


Of Intricate Lies And Simple Truths

by TheLastOfTheReal_Ones



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aobajousai, Based off of a prompt I found on Pinterest, Because Oikawa is angry, Childhood Friends, Complete, Fukurodani - Freeform, Karasuno, Lovers to enemies to lovers, M/M, Nekoma, Pirates, Space Pirates, Swearing, iwaoi - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:06:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 45,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25749367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheLastOfTheReal_Ones/pseuds/TheLastOfTheReal_Ones
Summary: Every time someone makes a promise, or a bargain, a tattoo is etched onto their skin.Or, Iwaizumi Hajime is an intergalactic criminal and captain of the pirate ship Aobajohsai, and his childhood best friend turned government agent is tasked with bringing him to justice.Also, they may or may not be in love.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou, Hanamaki Takahiro/Matsukawa Issei, Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou, Oikawa Tooru/Iwaizumi Hajime, Semi Eita/Tendou Satori, eventual Kyoutani Kentarou/Yahaba Shigeru
Comments: 32
Kudos: 98
Collections: My favorite haikyuu fics





	1. Promises and ink in all the colors of the world

“Hey, Iwaizumi!”  
“Shut up, Mattsun.”  
“I haven’t said anything yet.”  
“And yet I already know I won’t like it.”  
“Come on, man!”

The crew watched the exchange with unmasked interest. Amusement could be found in the curves of their smiles, and their captain knew where to search for their impatience. Mattsun had been the one to go for it, but he was about to ask something that they all were dying to know the answer to. And maybe this time, Hajime could humor them.

Let it be known that he was a fair and good captain. A captain of one of the most feared pirate ships of the universe whose crew was primarily composed of very dangerous intergalactic criminals, which of course he was too, sure, but a good captain still.

“Fine. Ask away.”

The look in the engineer’s eyes spoke of mischief. His lips curled into his usual nonchalant smile. He folded his arms on the table and rested his chin on his right palm, propped up to support his head. The man’s voice, when he finally uttered a word, was careful on the edges, and rang sharp in the air. He wanted an answer, and now that he was going to get it, his impatience was showing through.

“Your tattoo, what’s it for?”

All eyes were on him, and soon, he was cornered by intense gazes from everywhere around him. They’d know if he lied, and they could always tell if he was leaving something out. They thought he owed them the truth, the whole and utterly complete truth, and maybe he did. He just wished he had more time. They say living a lie can be harder than facing the truth. How wrong they were.

His eyes met the ones of his fellow pirates and criminal masterminds as he scanned them one by one. Satisfied with what he saw, or rather didn’t see, he leaned against the back of his chair, the cold of the wood seeping through his shirt and cooling his heated skin. It was almost enough to make the buzzing in his ears fade away. Almost. They really had chosen the perfect opportunity to ask for his secrets, what with the alcohol clouding his mind.

“A promise.”

Some of them groaned, some of them laughed. Some acted as if falling asleep, too. He just fixed his eyes on Mattsun, who still hadn’t looked away. That man was one of the brightest minds Hajime had ever met. But that was shadowed by his determination. The engineer never knew when to quit, and even his brain couldn’t get him out of every situation he got himself caught into.

“What promise?”  
“A promise I made.”  
“When?”  
“When I was 8.”

Thick eyebrows shot up, and for a second, Hajime thought they might disappear behind Mattsun’s hairline. The others showed various degrees of surprise too, their faces pulled into the funniest of frowns and grimaces. The captain would have laughed, be it under other circumstances. For now, he could only manage a smile, small and wavering.

“And what did you promise?”

Hajime brought his glass to his lips, the taste of beer dull on his tongue. It was always like this when he thought about the swirling lines and twirling colors merging to form the tattoo that stood proudly on his tan skin. But he normally didn’t let his mind take him back to the mark’s origins. Damn alcohol, controlling his mind better than his heart ever could. Of course, Hajime didn’t fight the flow of memories from flooding his mind, although he could’ve. There were battles he knew he had to lose so he’d win the war.

For a moment, a few seconds, he was lost. Lost to his friends, to his crew. To the Aobajohsai and to his world. But he’d never been more certain of where he was. A pair of chocolate eyes stared back into his green ones, a smile brighter than the stars and worth more than them all pulled at beautiful lips, a voice as soft and beautiful as the melodious songs of birds and the crashing of the waves on the shore they stood on… he was home.

“I promised I’d defeat him.”

Silence had always been something he revealed in. Something he loved and enjoyed. Silence was grounding. Like gravity, and laughter and tears. Silence was perfect because it was intricate, heavy with so much emotions that spoke more than words ever would. But it was also simple, because then only your thoughts mattered. Only your voice could be heard over the raging depths of your soul. It always made sense, when there was silence.

“Wow. 8 years old, and you’d already found your own arch nemesis. Consider me impressed. And strangely jealous.”

Kuroo chugged down the rest of his drink before slamming his cup on the table, narrowly missing Mattsun’s fingers. He owned himself a pretty menacing glare, but he didn’t notice that. His preoccupations laid elsewhere. Cat like eyes were almost shining in the weak lighting of the pub they had dubbed good enough for their night of drinking and halfhearted partying.

“You gonna show us, or what?”

Soon, Bokuto was eagerly smiling in all directions, his owlish eyes unable to settle on one thing for more than a second. Kuroo was still smirking, the jackass, and Mattsun seemed to have allowed some of his own eagerness to pierce through his usually well crafted facade of sleepiness. Even Kyoutani, from where he was sitting beside Hajime, had ceased his growling for a few seconds in the form of his barely there agreement.

Hajime could not blame them for their curiosity. Most of his crew didn’t have tattoos, and the few that ever did had long since completed the small promises they had vowed a part of their soul to, and so, ink had faded away. They all had been stuck in a life of constant fight or flight before they joined his ranks, and so they’d never really had any interest in bounding themselves to a promise they didn’t know if they’d ever had the time to hold. The captain knew, for example, that the only thing Makki had ever swore to do yet in his entire life had been to dye his hair pink, which he promptly did the minute he was given his first credits after a job well done.

All in all, unless you truly knew the extent of the act and were ready to take on the responsibility, it was very rare to make a promise. And most bargains were dealt with in a way that did not involve the scarring of your body or even words that would ever put a part of you on the line. Most people in the universe went their entire lives without once having a tattoo etched onto their skin. But Hajime had grown up with the tales of old warriors and grand thieves bound to obedience by only the reminder of their own honor in colors and shapes. He had grown up waiting for a day to come, a day that would see beautiful promises and daring ink unfold on his skin. A day that would see him finally become everything he ever wished of being.

Hajime had always dreamed of one thing in this world. He dreamed of being strong enough to travel the sea of stars and the galaxies, painted in all the colors of the world. He dreamed of being strong enough to always be free. That freedom, he had always wanted to share it. And who better to do that with than his very best friend in the world?

In all of his grand search for freedom, he had found the gravity that would hold his soaring heart close. One thing that would be his only prison, the only shadow to his bright stars. And that came in the form of a promise.

“You better take one damn good look, ‘cause I’m not doing this again.”

Hajime put his empty glass on the table and chanced one last glance at his crew. His friends. His family. The ones he trusted with his life and would happily die for, if it’d ever come to that. They were all solemn, for once. Their features were pulled into a serious yet relaxed smile, but their eyes were telling a different story. They knew this meant a lot for the man. Their captain had kept his tattoo a secret for a long time, and even when they found out, he always had something covering the sacred ink.

He lifted his shirt over his hand with ease even in the daze of inhibition, and he put the white piece of fabric on his lap, straightening up once more. Again, all eyes were on him, but they had never left. Hajime took a deep breath before opening his eyes, and he’d barely registered he had even closed them in the first place that his mind was going blank.

Most of what he saw was honest to God awe. Then came the shock, and even sadness poke through some of his friend’s swirling of emotions battling it out on their face, clear as day. Even Mattsun had let go of every bit of control he possessed to create his facade of choice. Hajime was grateful. They cared enough to show regret and sadness for him. And they cared enough to still face him while bearing it. It made this all the more complicated but somehow comforting.

“… I’m so sorry, man.”  
“Don’t worry about it. I made peace with it a while ago.”  
“But… you said you swore to defeat him…”  
“I did.”

Hajime pulled his shirt over his head and hid the mark. He could hear his heart beating in his ears, and he knew it was the same rhythm that was always beating just behind his scar. Just behind his bounds and chains. The rhythm that never lied against the only truth the man would ever know. It was fitting. Perfect and intricate and simple all at once, just like a silence found in the dead of night. Just like a love that was never lost.

Hajime smiled to himself. That had been all it took. One look, one smile. One laugh. And he was gone. Lost and found. He’d been bound to his home by his gravity and had soared to the skies with a piece of it nonetheless. Just like he had too. The love of his life, the best friend he could have ever wished for, and the one man he’d give everything to defeat one day.

They say living a lie can be harder than facing the truth. Oh, how right they had been.

It’s easy to get attached, easier even to give in when you know exactly how much you can gain. But some truths can become lies, with time. Just like lies can be the truths of another’s mind.

The victory he craved for was the one thing grounding him, the one thing reminding him of the feeling of freedom. But it was also his living lie, because he knew. He knew he’d rather die a thousand deaths than defeat the heart he so carefully cradled in the palm of his hands and held close to his own so their rhythms could be one again.

After all, love was perfect. An intricate lie and a simple truth all at once, and it had never learned how to be fair.

☀️

Tooru smiled, all teeth and no joy. His mind screamed at him to run away, but his heart had decided for him a long time ago. Even so far away, it ruled as master of his emotions and king of his soul. It stood galaxies away, millions and millions of stars and suns and moons away, but it had more control over him than his own words and all of his promises. Because you can never truly forget the first mark on your skin, whether it still scars you or not. That was the reality of every being in this universe that ever made a promise.

Of course, he had seen the blow coming a mile away. The man he was facing was not what one would call a good fighter. He showed every crack in his armor without even realizing it. He swung his fists too much and too little at the same time, and it seemed his brain could not quite keep up with his limbs.

But Tooru took the punch to the jaw anyway. It didn’t really hurt or anything. And it didn’t even make him lose an inch of his balance. And the punch seemed to have hurt his adversary, if you could even call him that, more than him. Quite frankly, it was a laughable attempt at a right hook that had the man smiling brighter.

Of course, it wasn’t from the pathetic excuse of a living being his instincts wanted him to run away from.

“You should consider changing your line of work. You’re not cut out for this.”

One punch and the man was falling down hard, knocked unconscious. Tooru stepped over him and finally ran. He had three seconds. Better make a damn good use of it. Three… two… one…

He barely had his fingers around the small disk that he was being sent flying across the whole width of the room, crashing against cold metal walls and floor that did nothing to soften his landing.

He couldn’t remember falling unconscious, but he didn’t have time to dwell on that. He had to get out of here now, or else he’d have even bigger problems than he already had pilling up on his plate. And he already had a fair amount, thank you very much. So there was truly one last thing to do. Run like hell.

He managed, somehow, to stand up again and execute his oh so thought of and not at all spur of the moment like plan. He ran like hell. He didn’t look back once, didn’t take the time to properly assess his surroundings, which resulted in a twisted ankle and an angry shout when he collided into pathetic-excuse-of-a-human-being on his way to the doors.

But he did make it outside in time before the second and bigger explosion could sent the room to, well, hell. Thank God for small mercies.

His hold on the small piece of metal tightened and he was running again, forgetting all about twisted ankles and aching knees. He didn’t have time for that. He had what he had come here for, which meant it was time for a swift escape. He made it through the endless hallways of the fortress and finally found himself in the hangar, his ship still hidden in the corner behind crates and heavy metal equipment. It was time to go. The admiral ship wouldn’t wait for him forever.

Three hours, some very welcomed ice on his ankle and a lecture from his friend and doctor Yahaba Shigeru later, he was allowed to leave the medical wing of the government ship, and promptly retired to his apartment. At least the hallways of the ship had a good lighting. If he tripped again tonight, he might just stay sprawled on the floor and dub it his new bed for an unknown amount of time. Or just maybe until he could get up again.

The door to his room opened automatically after a swipe of his thumb on the small panel beside it. The lights were on and Tooru stepped in with a sigh, finally letting go of the stiffness in his shoulders and allowing them to drop. God, this had been harder than he thought it would be. It was still worth it, of course. The man would give his right arm for the small disk he brought up to eye level for inspection. Well, after reflection, maybe not his arms, nor his legs. His knee, sure, that one he’d give for free.

How do you give your knee but not the rest of your leg? Is it even possible? Maybe if he’d replace his knee he could keep his leg. That’d be so strange…

_“Good evening, Oikawa Tooru. My sensors indicate your pain medication has taken effect.”_

That… made sense.

“Good evening to you too, Kiyoko. Do I have any missed calls or transmissions?”  
_“No missed call or transmission.”_  
“Thank you.”  
_“You are welcome.”_

The A.I didn’t say anything else, and Tooru didn’t feel like starting a conversation right now. He had bigger worries to attend to. Like catching up on hours and hours of sleep. But that could wait a bit longer too. He had to make sure his stolen item did contain the information he needed. Or else his superiors would really be pissed. He promised them results, and he knew he had to show for it.

Plus, if he made a promise, he’d keep it. Everybody knew that about him. He was a man of his words. One of the last ones.

That’s exactly why that stupidly hard to acquire little disk was so damn important.

He finally tore his eyes away from it and looked around his room. If he headed toward his bed, he would fall asleep. If he sat at his desk and refused to rest his arms on the table, there were less chances of him falling asleep. And if he stayed up like this for a few more minutes, he knew he’d make true on his words of tripping and staying down. So, uncomfortable desk chair it is. He made his way to it and sat down, his legs almost crying out in relief. He straightened his back and pushed away all thought of sleeping. Easy enough to do.

Now, where was he? Oh, yes, pain meds acting out on his sleep deprived brain… and promises and promises and promises, like always… and metal…? No, no, small metal piece… yes, the disk he had in his hand, and that he still had in his hand! That disk! Yes.

 _“Oikawa, do you require assistance?”_  
“Huh… yes, please. I… huh… I need to crack the code on that thing and get all the information from its core. It’s really important.”  
_“I’ll get right on it.”_  
“Once you have it, put it in my confidential folders. Title: the Aobajohsai. Do not let anybody else access the codes, and erase the process from your memory’s historic after, please.”  
_“Yes, Oikawa. While I complete this task, you should get some rest.”_

The man chuckled, finally giving in and burying his head in his arms, propped up on the cool metal of the desk. Now that Kiyoko had everything under control, he could sleep, right? He had barely managed to utter something along the lines of ‘warn me when it's done…’ before his eyelids closed and his brain gave way to sleep.

_“Sleep well, Oikawa Tooru.”_

Some hours later, his neck was stiff and he no longer felt his arms, but at least his head was clear. Mostly clear. As he had asked, Kiyoko had woken him up when the task had been completed, although something told him that the A.I had purposefully taken its sweet time so as to let him rest longer. He didn’t voice his hypothesis, he knew he wouldn’t get his answer, so he muttered a sleepy thank you and rose from his chair. He needed coffee.

“Kiyoko, open the Aobajohsai folder for me, please.”  
_“Here it is.”_  
“Thank you.”

His tablet in hand, he scrolled through all the information he had gathered over five years and memorized since then, finally coming upon the new section, provided by the core of the disk he had retrieved the night before. He clicked the section opened.

He almost didn’t hear the A.I. Almost.

_“Oikawa, are you alright?”_

He didn’t open his eyes yet. He couldn’t, to say the truth. He couldn’t find it in himself to face it right now, even though he didn’t know what exactly it was he’d have to face. How could he? He didn’t know for sure if his informer was right. Maybe he’d just find things he already knew written on the screen. Or maybe it’d just be useless information.

Or maybe it’d be the one thing he needed to get to him.

For the first time in a long, long time, Tooru felt dread settle deep in his stomach, squeezing his missing heart painfully. He was scared to open his eyes and scared of what he’d find of the stolen core. He was scared of what he was about to do, scared of what it would imply for him, and for his heart. His heart, galaxies and seas of stars away. He was terrified.

He didn’t want to get his hopes up, and wasn’t that funny, when he didn’t even know what he was hoping to find. He felt like laughing, suddenly. And he did, which Kiyoko apparently didn’t take kindly to.

 _“Are you laughing at me, Oikawa Tooru?”_  
“No, no, Kiyoko, I’m not. I’m just laughing, that’s all.”  
_“Oh, sorry. Did you recall a funny thing?”_  
“More like the saddest of things that’s ever happened to me.”

The A.I hummed thoughtfully, or at least that’s how Tooru chose to interpret it. Than, there was silence, for a few seconds, and somehow, he found himself looking at the screen of his tablet again. At first, he didn’t see anything standing out, just lines of text and words pulled together to form sentences after sentences. He didn’t know where to focus, where to start. His brain seemed to have suddenly forgotten how to read, or something like it.

But there were some things you just couldn’t seem to forget, no matter how hard you wished you could. Some things that would stay on your mind for your entire life, as if it had been a very part of you since your birth. As if it was what made you who you were. And perhaps it did. Be it the smell of your mother’s favorite coffee, a smell you had grown up with and would always associate with kisses on the cheeks and proud smiles that brightened up any dark days, or the feeling of cold water lapping at your feet, soothing all worries and heartbreaks alike, and leaving you with a peacefulness only the sea could grant you. Some things would never leave you, just like some were always meant to be forgotten. They would become more than memories, and they were free of the prison of time. Just like promises, and ink and colors on your skin.

Sometimes, it was a smell, or a feeling. Sometimes, it was the name of your soulmate, of your best friend and first and only love. Sometimes, it was just a word that could destroy your entire world or make it the paradise you always wished it would be. It could be letters that, once put together, formed a dream you would never stop chasing after.

And so your mind makes sure you never forget that word, that name, those precious letters. If perhaps it kept on seeing it everywhere at first, now, it would take its time, and would search for it. Your eyes would feel a pull, and look, and chase it, until you found it.

That was how Tooru found himself looking at his best friend’s name, in a confidential folder no one else had access to beside him and Kiyoko. A confidential folder he had spent five years gathering information in. The folder that contained everything he knew about Aobajohsai. And his best friend’s, his almost’s, his only love’s name was written in it. Black on white. Or more like blue on glass like white, but the point was there.

Of course, he knew about this. Doesn’t mean he was above choosing to deny it. And so he had chosen to live a lie, hoping maybe if he believed it hard enough, it would become true. Maybe it had been hopeless since the start, maybe it had never been worth it, but… he couldn’t do anything else. Couldn’t find it in himself to condemn his best friend, his Iwa-chan, to the life of a criminal. He had been working on this for half a decade, and had kept on looking and looking for anything that would prove him right, but it seemed life loved to prove him wrong.

So, here he was, forced to accept that Iwaizumi Hajime truly had given up on a normal life. The man wasn’t living a quiet life with a wife or husband somewhere on a small planet, wasn’t raising his children to be law abiding citizens. And as much as it hurt Tooru to even think about Hajime finding someone to love that wasn’t him, he would have preferred that over this any day of the week.

At least it would mean he didn’t have to fight his best friend.

Oikawa Tooru was a man of his words. One of the last ones, in a world where loyalty laid where the money was and promises were collected as trophies whether they were held or not. In a world where a word was worth only the time it took to be said, and was as trustworthy as the shifting tides of the seas.

But there was one promise he made, one that he loved more than he should have. One he did not intend on holding on. He couldn’t, his missing heart would never forgive him otherwise. And so it had been a long time ago that he had decided to keep one mark, one scar, forever. He loved it more than the star it depicted and never wanted to see it fade away. He’d rather die. He probably will, but that’s a worry for another day.

 _“Do you have all the information you need? Is there anything missing?”_  
“No, Kiyoko, it’s all there. You can close the folder now. And schedule a meeting with the team. Tomorrow, 10 o’clock.”  
_“The members of the task force have been alerted.”_  
“One last thing.”

Tooru could remember that day as if it had been only yesterday, not 7 years ago. He could remember green eyes staring into his own with something akin to regret, and remorse. He could still feel the cold wind almost making him fall over, the icy waters of the sea coming up to his knees. He could still hear it, the words he had screamed, his voice breaking into a sob before he could even finish his sentence.

It was his first promise, his first and the only lie he had ever told. He had felt it, the tattoo being etched on his skin, the ink unfurling into soft curves and the beautiful colors taking over his pale skin. He had known, even then, as his heart was being torn away from him and leaving with a smile on his lips, that he’d be lying.

And he could still remember every word of the answer he got. Words that had been a constant in his life until then, words that were his gravity and his wings all at once, and that changed his world as much as the name of the man that had said them.

“I’ll find you! I’ll find you, you stupid brute! I swear I’ll find you, even if it’s the last thing I do!”

His heart had smiled, bright in the night and reflected in the splashing and crashing waters of the soothing sea. Bright even through the violent wind he had caused with the stupidly big engines of his pirate ship. He had smiled, that night, Hajime. Smiled and screamed his first promise too. And Tooru had been there, standing knee deep into icy waters and trying to cover his eyes full of tears from the wind, screaming to all hell after his best friend that was about to take off into the night without looking back.

“Then I’ll defeat you, I'll always escape you and you’ll just have to find me again. I swear I’ll defeat you, Tooru.”  
“You can certainly try, you freaking idiot!”

He’d remember it for all of his life, just like the smell of his mother’s favorite coffee and the feeling of the waves lapping at his bare feet. He’d remember it just like he remembered his Iwa-chan’s promise. There had been tears in his eyes, and a ‘I love you’ on Hajime’s lips. And he’d remember it, because he’d give the world just to keep that promise close to his missing heart forever.

“Make sure the Seijoh is ready. We’re leaving tomorrow after I’ve briefed everyone.”  
_“Are you planning on going after the pirates?”_  
“That’s what I was hired for, wasn’t it?”


	2. Drunk on your love

“Hey, look up. Trouble’s coming.”

Sure enough, there they were. Members of the task force sent by governor Irihata were standing in front of the bar, sharp eyes looking all around for anything worth their attention. Looking for them. Good luck with that. The entire crew had their image inducers on right now, and so rendering their real identity invisible. Those guys would need to know exactly what to search for to find them, and they’d also need a really good hacker to get past their forged identities.

“Fuck, that’s Kozume Kenma!”  
“Hey, Kuroo, didn’t you go to school with him?”  
“Huh, yeah…”

Well, fuck. Kozume Kenma was the best hacker to ever work for governor Irihata, although normally he was in director Nekomata’s unit, not in the task forces’ recent recruitment. Now that Hajime thought about it, the men standing a few tables away from them were all highly trained government agents, but none of them were normally candidates and even less recruits of task forces. They all specialized in rather specific fields and only a few months ago, Aobajohsai’s captain was sure they were all in different and various units. Why put them all together like this? What goal could Irihata possibly have of a team of individuals that had probably as much in common as a horse did with a clock?

Eyes a deep blue scanned over them with a calm almost terrifying. Kageyama Tobio, genius engineer and apparently one of the best aiming skills Karasuno academy ever had. They said his shots were crazy accurate, and he never missed. His calm and cold demeanor made him extremely hard to read, both in and out of the field. Beside him was Hinata Shouyo, also an engineer, but he specialized in mechanics. Some said he was the only match to Kageyama’s skill set, others said he was most feared in aerial combat. His bright orange hair was hard to miss, even with his height. The small man was talking with his companion now, and they started to argue soon enough.

There was someone trying to break the fight, and it took some time for Hajime to identify them. Yachi Hitoka, a small woman with short blond hair, who was in her second year of xenobiology. That girl was smart, something along the lines of genius even. She was only 23 and she was almost to her post-doctorate degree. Her research on cellular regeneration in both human and alien DNA had made a big difference in today’s medicinal advances.

They were accompanied by two other members of the task force. One was a tall man with black curly hair, currently talking with the owner and barista of the bar, and the other was Kozume Kenma. The black haired man was Akaashi Keiji, graduate of Fukurodani’s top class and former member of the governor’s own unit. A mix of fighters and researchers. And that man was one of the best. As for Kenma, the little man with bicolored hair’s reputation preceded him. Nekoma academy’s top class then directly to director Nekomata’s special unit, that kid was a known hacker and brilliant with anything tech or electricity related.

Hajime would deny it for the rest of his life, but his heart threatened to burst out of his chest when he saw that Tooru wasn’t with them. That was probably for the best. Call him a hopeless romantic, but he didn’t want this to be the first time in five years that they saw each other. He wouldn’t even be able to recognize him, much less spot him in the crowd of this rowdy bar. But Hajime did want to see him. He’d wanted to see him everyday for the past seven years. And knowing that this time was the one made his world brighter, somehow.

Another thing he would never admit to was the fear that was taking a hold of his mind and clawing at his heart. He wished he could ignore it longer, but he knew he couldn’t. He had been waiting for Tooru for so long. He had been running from Tooru for so long. He couldn’t tell which one he wanted, to keep on running or finally giving in. His mind knew, of course. But when did he ever listen to his mind?

He had to remind himself that now things were different. He had planned this, made sure this would happen one way or another. It was time, and he’d be damned if he let fear control him now.

“What are they doing here anyway? Aren’t they a little early?”  
“Maybe they’re not here for us.”  
“Dude, I love you, but you’re so stupid. That’s the task force that’s been on our heels for the last few months. And their leader’s been at it for at least three years now.”  
“Five. Five years. Now shut up, or they’ll start getting suspicious.”  
“Too late.”

Hanamaki was right. Mister sunshine with the literal sun on his head was heading their way, smiling way too much. Permanent-scowl-on-his-face Kageyama was hot on his heels, a looming presence beside the smaller of the two. It was like watching the sun and the moon side by side, or fire meeting ice.

“Hi! I’m Hinata Shouyo, and mister grumpy pants here is Kageyama. It’s nice to meet you!”

A chorus of ‘hey’s and ‘hi’s was all the answer he got, but he was probably expecting it. After all, this fine establishment was known for being the number one bar where criminals and normal citizens alike could mix together. And it was the perfect place to drink at if you wanted to keep a low profile, even going to certain lengths of anonymity. Which the Aobajohsai crew was counting on right now more than ever. In fact, this whole planet was probably the number one choice of anyone in hiding, or anyone wanting to keep a low profile.

“My friends and I were just wondering if you knew where we could find the Aobajohsai and its crew members. We have a job for them, and apparently, you’re the ones to ask for information.”  
“Sorry, little dude. We don’t know anything.”

Kuroo’s answer did nothing to deter the ball of sunshine’s joyous front. Hinata smiled even more, his eyes almost closing and his nose lightly scrunching up. Although Kageyama seemed to get in a mood worse than his previous one. Which if you had told Hajime he could do that, he would not have believed you. How can anyone scowl so much?

“I see. Well, thank you for your time. Enjoy the rest of your evening!”  
“You too.”

They were leaving. Bokuto was just about to sigh in relief when both men turned around one last time. There was nothing that stood out in their demeanors at first, and perhaps Hajime saw it too late. But there was really nothing that could be done now. The threat was clear in their eyes and bright smiles never looked more blatantly fake.

“One more thing. Tell us if you hear anything. We’ll be staying in town for a few weeks.”  
“Of course.”

And they were gone, for good this time. The rest of sunshine and grumpy pants’ friends were leaving the bar a few minutes later. It seemed the second the door closed behind Akaashi, the pirates could breathe again. Hajime didn’t know if he wanted to laugh or cry. Probably both. He wouldn’t, of course, he had a reputation to preserve. On one hand, he knew his plan was coming together, although a bit earlier than anticipated. In the other, he was about to have a less than ideal reunion with the love of his life that probably hated him by now. Tooru believed in everything Hajime wasn’t and could never be. He had always been gravity to his wings, and Hajime was the shadow to his stars. Of course he hated him.

He ignored the part of him that nagged at him to stop being ridiculous. He ignored the hopeful and somewhat rational part of his heart that whispered Tooru couldn’t hate him, no matter how hard he tried. They had known each other all of their lives, and although Hajime had kept a part of his soul hidden from him, he had always been truthful when they were together. When love blossomed in their heart, when they kissed for the first time and when they kissed again and again without ever tiring of it, he had been more himself than he had ever been. His already love stricken heart had long since belonged to Oikawa Tooru, just like it always would.

And Hajime ignored the part of him that believed his soulmate had felt the same. He ignored the whisper that took hold of his racing heart and branded its words on his soul.

_“Stars wouldn’t shine without darkness, and shadows would not stand out without light.”_

It was easier this way. He wouldn’t get his hopes up this way. It’d hurt less this way.

“Come on, boys. Let’s go. We don’t want to stick around for too long, they might come back.”

And so they left after paying for their drinks. The night air was fresh. They were walking toward where they put the ship for the remaining days of their stay here, in one of the many hangars spread across the city. The sidewalks were mostly empty at this hour of the night, aside from the occasional passerby that would barely spare them a look.

Bokuto had an arm swung on top of Kuroo’s shoulders, both of them laughing loudly and freely. If not for their looks, one might have thought they were brothers with how well they got along. Kyoutani was standing a few paces away from the drunk duo, his least frightening scowl on, which meant he was relaxed and calm. That was good. The kid deserved a break from time to time. They all did. They were leading a rather stressful life, after all.

Hanamaki was leaning on Matsukawa with what was probably all of his weight. The taller man finally decided to pick up his boyfriend and walk for the both of them. Pink hair made for a funny contrast against the dark green of Mattsun’s shirt. And all of this was done without so much of a halt in their conversation about, apparently, red pandas.

Hajime decided to keep to himself. No one that didn’t already have a shoulder to lean on needed help standing upright, although he was ready to catch both Bokuto and Kuroo if alcohol proved to be a greater opponent to the both of them than they could handle. So, no one needed him _yet_. He still had time to think a bit. And he had a lot of things to think about. Loads of things to think about, and figure out, and solve sooner rather than later. Like what exactly he’d do now that his one and only true love was, for the first time in seven years, standing on the same ground of the same planet as him.

Just as he was thinking he’d need to get Mattsun’s opinion on his plan, Bokuto almost ran into someone. Kuroo had managed to make the both of them come to an abrupt stop before he could collapse into the stranger, at the price of almost falling over. Seemed like time had ran out. Hajime helped them find their balance again and slipped between them to hold them both upright. They had apparently gave up on trying to do so alone and were now leaning heavily on him. And they were not small nor did they lack in muscles at all, so let’s just say the rest of the way back to the Aobajohsai was spent painfully dragging two idiots and already expecting all the muscles in his back and neck to hurt like hell come morning. Yay.

Just as they were rounding a corner, someone rushed past them, almost running into Kyoutani. They managed to make their way across the small group of pirates without so much as brushing against any of them, skillfully avoiding any collision. And all of that while holding a phone to their ear, muttering angrily into it. When the stranger passed by Hajime and his drunk best friends, he smiled over at the three and mouthed a ‘sorry’. Chocolate eyes shone bright even through the scarce light of the evening, and that smile was one Hajime had known since he was a child. A pretty voice rang in the captain’s head, and all of his worries faded away at the sight of beautiful brown curls falling on Tooru’s forehead.

The tall silhouette disappeared down the road even as Hajime strained his eyes to try and see through the darkness of the night. He hadn’t been able to look away, following with sharp eyes every of the graceful steps and movements his beloved took, putting more and more distance between them as he did so. Tooru hadn’t seen through his mask, he hadn’t recognized him at all. It was strange, to be able to look at the man without seeing anything else than cordial and polite thoughtfulness. Stranger even, to be able to see just how much Tooru had changed without the other man also coming to the same conclusion about him, and to think that to him, to his best friend, Hajime had been a drunk idiot with a slow mind that the leader of the task force would probably forget about not even an hour later.

“Hey, Iwai… zumi… I think… I’m gonna be sick…”  
“Okay.”  
“Cool. Could you… let go now?”  
“Oh, yeah, sorry.”

Kyoutani was standing closer to them now, Mattsun and Makki just a few feet up ahead. Kuroo was likely already asleep, limp against Hajime’s side. Bokuto had barely managed to get to the garbage bin before he was leaning over it, puking his guts out. And all Hajime could do was stare at the spot where he last saw Oikawa Tooru, still every bit the gorgeous and beautiful and mesmerizing man he’d fallen for more than 10 years ago.

“Iwaizumi?”  
“Yeah.”  
“You okay? You seem, hum, out of it. I had no idea your voice could do that.”  
“My voice’s normal.”

Mattsun gave him one look screaming ‘bullshit’ and Makki apparently took pity on him. Kyoutani seemed almost scared and Bokuto was still leaning on the bin, breathing heavy. But even he, in his state of extreme drunkenness, seemed to look at him as if seeing him for the first time.

“What?”  
“You sound like Mattsun when he rants about me to you and thinks no one else is listening. You’re in love.”  
“Poor little soul. You’ve officially fallen. You’re broken, lost, nothing can be done now.”  
“Stop with the dramatics, you two. The guy just saw his soulmate. Give him a break.”

What?

“What?”  
“Iwaizumi, dude, we’ve known you for six years now, and not once did you ever look at someone like that, or showed interest in anyone like that before. You were practically drooling all over him.”  
“No one’s judging, but yeah, Mattsun’s right.”  
“Of course, we’re judging you. Do you even know who that man is? That’s Oikawa Tooru. He’s literally the enemy, and totally out of your league anyway.”

Oh, right. They did not know about that yet. Well, now was as good a time as any, right? And postponing the inevitable would only make things more complicated in the future. The whole debacle with Tooru taught him that. And he did owe them the truth, now that they were all involved.

But maybe he should wait, because Kuroo was still sleeping and Bokuto would not remember a thing about this tomorrow morning. And the rest of the crew wasn’t here. So, wait until tomorrow morning it is.

“Yeah, well, let’s just get going, and hum… remind me to tell you something later, guys. When we’re all sober. It’s important.”  
“Joke’s on you, I’m never sober, ‘cause…”  
“You’re drunk on your love for Mattsun.”  
“That’s my line.”  
“I’m swooning.”

☀️

“Oikawa, where are we going?”  
“Don’t worry about it, Akaashi. I know what I’m doing.”

Yahaba rolled his eyes at that, a clear give away of his exact thoughts on the matter, and Akaashi let the corner of his mouth lift in a small hint of a smile. Oikawa was still walking in front of them, oblivious. Well, then, better to voice his concerns now than having his leader face them when they were rendered useless by a poor turn of events.

“Somehow, I highly doubt that, no offense.”  
“None taken. You’ll see, I’m sure we’ll get something out of that man. He owes me and I’m a hundred percent sure he knows where the Aobajohsai is hiding.”  
“Wow, how rude. To just assume we’re hiding, when we’re clearly not. Right, Bo?”  
“Yeah, like, we’re the ones that were waiting for you. You could’ve at least made an effort to find us sooner.”

Their guns were drawn faster than the two men still hiding in the shadows on their right anticipated. The alleyway they were in was narrow, and so they had not expected company where they couldn’t see it. Akaashi shared a look with Oikawa, both of them moving in front of Yahaba. Two trained agents and a doctor, strange odds so far, but manageable, if only those two were leading this ambush.

“Stop it, you two. You’re talking too much already.”  
“Told you we shouldn’t have put them there to begin with.”  
“Well, sorry we’re not all as good as you with planning this sort of things.”  
“Apologies accepted.”  
“Are you kidding me-”

They were arguing like children. Right in front of them. Akaashi didn’t know if he should feel insulted that they weren’t even looking at them anymore, or sympathetic. Oikawa had spent five years of his life chasing those morons. Five years. Half a decade. Either the leader of the crew was a damn mastermind who’s intelligence somehow made up for the lack there of in the rest of his crew, or the party sent to ambush them were just the odd ones out.

“Enough.”

The pink haired man and the one with caterpillar like eyebrows both fell silent, turning their attention to them once more. Akaashi was about to turn around to face the owner of the commanding voice they just heard, but he caught sight of Oikawa, and worry washed over him like a very cold shower. All of his senses were on alert. If Oikawa Tooru looked so surprised and dreadful all of a sudden, he should too.

“We have six men on the rooftops above you, guns all pointed at you, and four more on the ground. I suggest you put your weapons down.”

Akaashi slowly lowered his gun to the ground, as did Oikawa. The brown haired man was still looking at who he could guess were Matsukawa Issei and Hanamaki Takahiro. But he wasn’t looking at them. His gaze was fixed on something far away, probably not anywhere near the wall the two pirates were standing before. But maybe it was behind him. Akaashi had still been stuck in his half turn and was standing with Oikawa and Yahaba both in his sight, which was a good alternative to his original plan.

“Kindaichi.”

A tall man with odd black hair that stood up on his head like a strange and spiky mountain came up to them and collected their guns. He didn’t look at them even once, keeping his eyes downcast. His nervousness was palpable and poorly hidden. He retreated soon enough and to his apparent relief, returning to his previous spot beside a shorter man with his hair laying flat on the sides of his head.

“Turn around. Slowly.”

They obeyed, and by now Oikawa had regained his bearings. But he was glaring, furious, at the man they were facing now. Akaashi knew a lesser man would’ve recoiled at the intensity and the raging, barely contained anger in the man’s eyes, but Iwaizumi Hajime was no lesser man. He locked eyes with the death glare sent his way and held it. But he didn’t seem to be surprised, or even caught off guard. No, he was expecting it. And he was prepared. Or, Akaashi thought so, before he _smiled_. Not a bright and happy smile, or even a cruel or amused smirk, no, just a small, almost nervous smile. His voice was heavy with hidden emotions when he spoke again, as if it had just taken one look at his sworn enemy for him to lose his carefully crafted mask of confidence.

“Hey, Tooru.”

It was as if the world had stopped, suddenly. As if stars and galaxies had been frozen in oblivion and the skies awaited a permission that they were denied of to breathe again. It was as if they were standing in the eye of a storm, awaiting destruction and chaos with only the thought of a peaceful surrender in their mind. As if they were all counting down the seconds separating them from a solemn death.

The storm hit them in the face with all the pent up anger and rage of seven years spent with only one goal in mind. One goal. One promise, because Akaashi knew that much, only not to the extent of the truth Oikawa had kept close to him and him only.

Eyes the color of warm chocolate were as cold as the icy seas of stars and a voice that normally kept a thousand emotions a secret from the world unveiled one simple truth barring the name of disbelief.

“Hey? That’s all you have to say? You… you… you motherfucking bastard!”


	3. That’s still up for debate

“What do you want, Iwaizumi?”  
“Not gonna say hello?”  
“No.”

Hajime sighed. He knew Tooru wouldn’t be happy to see him. That much was a given. Well, it looked like he’d just have to carry the conversation for the both of them. Something he did not like doing at all. Tooru had always been the one talking his ears off when they were together, and Hajime, although he’d never admit it, didn’t mind it as much as he said he did.

“We have a proposition for you. So we’d like to talk.”  
“So much for talking when there’s guns pointed at you. I’d say you’re forcing us to listen.”  
“We won’t talk here, and this is merely a measure of security. Your job is to arrest us, isn’t it? Can’t blame us for being too careful.”  
“What makes you think we would even listen to a word you say?”  
“Because our proposition would benefit both of us.”

Tooru was glaring daggers at him. It was evident he didn’t want to listen to him. And his colleagues were no better. The doctor was looking all around him, scanning his surroundings and probably trying to assess the situation to the best of his abilities. Maybe he was looking for an escape, or a crack in their formation. His search was pointless, but he’d figure it out by himself. Although Hajime could admit he admired his resolve. He would have expected the smaller of the three to be nervous, or even worried. But he looked calm. Perhaps this wasn’t the first time he found himself in the presence of enemies who had the upper hand.

Akaashi Keiji was the embodiment of composed and collected. He was as still as a statue and managed to look ready to fall in a battle stance all at once. That kind of individual was always something to handle carefully. Hajime had only met a handful of people whose reactions were similar to the man’s. And they had all proved to be wild cards in the end. Hiding raging storms and minds worthy of geniuses behind sharp eyes. All of his instincts were yelling at him to be wary around that one especially.

“I suppose this is the part where you force us to follow you.”

The doctor had almost sounded bored when he had talked. Like this had happened a million times and would happen a million more, with always the same ending. Yahaba Shigeru could have been talking about his daily walk in the park with the same tone.

“You would be right about that.”  
“Lead the way, then.”

Tooru looked back at his friend with a raised eyebrow. Yahaba shrugged, blinked, and looked back at Hajime and the pirates. Akaashi sighed once before talking too, opting for the same joyous tone Shigeru had.

“Yes. Let’s get this over with.”

Tooru looked almost annoyed at their attitude. He glared at Hajime again, as if he was responsible for his friends’ lack of response.

“So we’re not going to fight? Not at all? Not even one punch?”  
“They do have guns pointed at us.”  
“If you Naruto run, you can dodge the bullets.”  
“Not the time, Makki.”  
“There’s always time for memes.”

Akaashi and Yahaba didn’t try anything when they blindfolded them. Tooru didn’t either, but he did try and murder Hajime with the intensity of his glare when he put the cloth over his eyes.

☀️

“For the last time, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”  
“Stop messing with me! I’m not stupid!”  
“That’s still up for debate.”  
“Bro.”  
“Sorry. That one was just waaay too easy.”  
“Like I was saying, I’m not stupid. Or not that stupid anyway. I know you have one. I’ve never seen one before, you have to show me!”  
“You can’t see an A.I, Bo. You can talk to it, and listen to it. But you don’t see it.”  
“And here you can observe a wild specimen of Bokuto Koutarou in its natural habitat, exhibiting its most common trait: stupidity.”  
“Shut up, Makki.”  
“Love you, man.”

Tooru had to stifle a smile. Those people were idiots. They were funny, somewhat entertaining and particularly friendly for pirates, but man were they stupid. Akaashi seemed to have come to a similar conclusion, although it did not seem to be amusing him in the slightest. And Yahaba was still tuning everyone out.

“What’s on your mind, dear Kashi?”  
“Hey, you didn’t answer me. Guys, he’s ignoring me.”  
“God, I should’ve thought about that one way sooner.”  
“Why are you being so mean?”  
“Don’t worry, bro, I’ll never ignore you.”

Akaashi, from his seat on Tooru’s right, spared an unimpressed glance at the supposedly dangerous pirates in front of him before staring at him dead in the eyes. He had that look on his face, the one he normally reserved for when Hinata and Kageyama were having yet another meaningless fight. The look of utter exasperation only he could muster without looking pathetic too.

“I just can’t believe you spent five years looking for those idiots.”

Before anyone else could say a thing, the doors in front of them that their four captors were totally guarding were pushed open and Hajime bursted in the room, holding a blond man with two black stripes dyed around his head by the collar of his shirt. Both looked mad. The man Tooru recognized as Kyoutani Kentarou was sporting one of the biggest scowls he had ever seen, and he knew Kageyama Tobio. His captain let go of him and gave him one glare. Apparently, that was enough of a message for him to understand, and the smaller of the two sat down next to Kuroo at the table in front of them. He crossed his arms and kept glaring. Although he did look down at the table when he met Yahaba’s eyes.

“Oh, Kyoutani, did you get in a fight again?”

A growl later and the man with the atrocious bedhead was grinning.

“Well, the other guy probably deserved it.”  
“Don’t encourage him, Kuroo.”  
“I’m not. I’m just stating a fact. Am I right?”

Kyoutani looked back up for a second, met Yahaba’s curious gaze and looked back down with a frown. Tooru didn’t think he was going to answer. He surprised him when he muttered:

“They were running an animal fighting ring.”  
“Well, then, that’s a yes. See? I’m always right.”

Kuroo laughed with Bokuto and Hanamaki, Matsukawa smiled and Kyoutani barely hid his smirk. Hajime looked utterly exhausted. Tooru wondered, for a second, if things were always like this on the Aobajohsai. If everyone had each other’s backs all the time, like Kuroo did with Bokuto and Kyoutani. Even scowling and growling men were still valued like friends and family. It seemed no matter how much your behavior could suck, you still had someone by your side ready to fight for you. Maybe that’s one thing Hajime had left for. Having a family you could choose for yourself, and knowing they had chosen you too. It wasn’t like that, working for Irihata. But Tooru was actually working, he wasn’t in the Seijoh task force to make friends. He was working, putting bad guys in jail, fulfilling yet another promise.

And he did get along with pretty much everybody. Like Akaashi. And Yahaba and him were pretty close, almost like brothers. Right?

“You brought us here to talk. Better get to it, then. We don’t have all day.”

Hajime gave him that look that said ‘I know what you’re thinking’. Tooru had to resist the urge to stick his tongue out at him. He knew that was too childish. He definitely knew it was too childish.

Hajime sat down in the last chair left, right in front of Tooru. He was still looking at him, and he could only glare because he refused to show just how much this all affected him. For the first time in seven years, they were looking at each other, and Tooru could hear his voice, and see his eyes. His beautiful green eyes that were as mesmerizing as galaxies, if not more…

NO! He was angry. He was so so angry. Yes, he was being angry, just angry. Angry for the rest of his life! Yeah! Hajime was the one who should be making efforts. He had left, he had promised to defeat him as if he was still an 8 year old boy again, playing make believe and running on the beach. He had hurt the both of them for a dream that was worth more than their love. He should be angry. He had all the rights to be angry.

Something must have changed in his expression because Hajime almost winced looking at him. He swallowed, and a second later he answered.

“Like I said, we have a proposition for you.”  
“What is it?”  
“You’ve probably heard of the Shiratorizawa.”

Akaashi blinked, Yahaba’s eyebrows furrowed and Tooru was almost saying yes before he realized he did not, in fact, knew anything about the Shiratorizawa, or even what it was for that matter. His own eyebrows furrowed too.

“No, we haven’t.”

Hajime leaned back in his chair, ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

“To be honest, that doesn’t surprise me. I just wanted to be sure. You do spend most of your time out asking about us more than anything.”

Tooru narrowed his eyes, an insult on the tip of his tongue, before he realized yet another thing. Hajime was right. Fuck. How was Hajime so right all the time? How did Hajime know more things than him? How?

“So who’s Shiratorizawa?”

Akaashi was becoming one of his favorite person as of late. Always saving him from his nagging thoughts and helping him think about something else than the mess of a relationship he had with Hajime. Of course, he was not aware of that fact, and would never be. They all knew too much about him already, especially mister the-best-at-deductions Akaashi Keiji.

“They’re a new group of pirates, some of the most dangerous and deadly criminals in the universe. They steal, kill and destroy everything they come across. And their captain, he’s the worst of them all. No one knows who he truly is. He goes by an alias, the ‘Eagle King’. No one that’s ever seen him has made it out of the encounter alive.”  
“They’re real monsters.”  
“Wiped out a whole city after the local forces spotted their ship behind the mountains. They left no survivors.”  
“The Iron Wall killings.”  
“Yeah.”  
“But what does that have to do with us?”

The pirates looked at each other. For how childish they acted just a few minutes ago, the change in their behavior was an easy one to notice. They all looked solemn, serious. As if they were preparing for war. And with where they were going, they might as well have been. But why would they decide to fight another pirate ship?

“We want your help taking them down.”

Silence took over the room. Heavy, deadly serious silence that everyone could practically hear because of how truly loud it was.

“... are you serious?”  
“Why wouldn’t we be?”  
“We’re part of a task force made to bring down the Aobajohsai. You are the Aobajohsai. And you ask us for help anyway. Have you even thought about how crazy that is?”  
“Not to mention that if the Shiratorizawa is really a threat, the Council will start putting together a task force who’ll be hell bent on catching those guys. Why not ask them? They might say yes, if you ask nicely. And, you know, don’t point guns at them.”  
“We can’t wait that long. And even if we do, we can’t be sure we could trust them.”  
“How are you so sure you can trust us?”  
“We can’t, but better you than some strangers. And frankly, you’ve been running around for a while now, it’d be crazy not to do anything to make you stop.”

Kuroo was grinning, and his smile was showing too much teeth to be friendly. His logic made sense. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. But turning your enemies to reluctant allies seemed a bit far-fetched.

“What if we said yes to this… alliance? What about when it’s over? It is our job to bring you down. And the only smart thing you could do when all’s said and done would be to stab us in the back.”  
“Yahaba is right. This deal of yours makes no sense. We can’t accept knowing you’d be sending us straight into enemy territory, motive backing you up. It’d be suicide.”  
“You’re right. It does sound crazy, and I get why you’d think we’re setting you up. So that’s why we’ll make a second deal. A bargain.”

Hanamaki was very serious when he said those words. Everyone knew why, of course. Bargains were something no one wanted to mess with. Promises were already a big deal, but making a bargain was taking it a step further. Everyone knew of the consequences of violated bargains to both parties involved.

Some said it was a slow, painful death, others said it was like being burned alive from the inside out. Some said it felt as if your lungs were filling up with boiling water, leaving you burning and drowning at the same time, others said it took hold of your senses one by one until you were only a dead shell of a human being, barely alive. No matter who you chose to believe in the end, there was one thing you couldn’t run from when you decided a bargain could settle things for you: you put your life on the line, and that tattoo would either be another disappearing mark or your death sentence.

“You’d go there?”  
“Yeah. If it means you’ll help us.”  
“What would we bargain?”  
“Three days. You’ll give us three days starting the moment we beat Shiratorizawa. A head start, if you will. Three days to get the hell away from you. And then you’re free to chase us around like you did before.”

Tooru’s frown could rival Kyoutani’s, something the blond seemed aware of and was not happy about. Hajime was looking at him, green eyes piercing through his very soul. As if searching for answers he knew he wouldn’t give him.

“Why do you want to stop them?”

The question of the hour. Pirates going after pirates wasn’t that uncommon, but powerful and respected ships like the Aobajohsai and apparently the Shiratorizawa were normally trying to keep clear of each other’s wrath. If not out of respect, then it was to make sure they didn’t start a war. Because when known pirates fought, every criminal took a side. And the more people you mobilised in one place, the more attention you were drawing there. The last thing you could want, as a criminal of any kind, was to have to face the armies the Council of governors would send your way if you acted out to loudly.

“We’ve never been very fond of murderers wearing a name we share.”  
“And yet your answer seems to be somewhat worth one of theirs.”  
“There’s a difference between necessity and bloody rampage. We don’t want to kill them, but we will if we have to. Doesn’t mean we’ll be proud of it, it just means we’re ready to live with it.”  
“And the defeat you promised me, will it be just another necessity too? Another thing you can live with too?”

Hajime’s eyes narrowed, and searched again. But Tooru wasn’t going to give this one up. No, not this one.

“It won’t matter if we don’t make it out of our fight with Shiratorizawa alive.”  
_“I can live knowing my promise won’t be held. Can you?”_  
“We’d be putting our own lives on the line. You ask a lot of us.”  
_“How can I be sure it’ll be worth it? How can I be sure you won’t just let me down again?”_

It felt like there was only them in the room. Tooru couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or not. He couldn’t tell if this was going to be yet another mistake, another heartbreak he’d have to live with. He couldn’t tell if he was falling again, or if maybe this time he was soaring through oceans of stars.

“I know we do, but we can’t do this without you. What’s it gonna be?”  
“We… we’ll think about it.”

He didn’t have to do this on his own, right?

“That’s fine. We’ll give you a day, and then, we’ll meet up again. I’ll send you the time and place.”  
“So generous of you.”  
“Shut up, Shittykawa.”

The pirates were getting up one by one, and Tooru was about to look at his colleagues to get their opinions on this lovely encounter they just lived through when Hajime cleared his throat. He looked back at him and realized the man was almost… nervous.

“Would you mind if we talked a bit more? In private.”

Tooru raised an eyebrow at him, and was about to make a smart retort when Yahaba elbowed him in the ribs, hard.

“We’ll wait for you outside.”

And with that everyone filled out of the room, leaving them alone. Akaashi had looked worried and pointedly glanced at Hajime, then at the door and at Yahaba. Tooru nodded as discreetly as possible, showing he understood the message. The whole task force had come up with some signs to give each other in case they couldn’t talk or were compromised. And so Tooru knew Akaashi would gladly help him fight his way out of the Aobajohsai if he needed to.

Again, the man with the curly black hair was climbing the ladder of his favorite person’s scale, making his way to the top ever so slowly. Tooru wondered if they could’ve been better friends, had they met under other circumstances. Probably.

“What do you want to talk about?”

He hadn’t realized he had been talking until he was finishing his sentence, and Hajime was glancing at him. They had both sit down again, facing each other. And this time, they really were the only ones in the room. Still, Tooru couldn’t tell if he was glad or not.

“I wanted to know if you were doing alright.”  
“Oh, I am, I assure you. My life is very fulfilling and I am so glad it led me here. Can’t you tell by the way I am radiating joy and happiness?”

He hadn’t really meant to say any of that at all, but it was satisfying to see Hajime wince nonetheless.

“Why do you want to stop them?”  
“What?”  
“Shiratorizawa. Why do you really want to stop them.”  
“They’re cold blooded killers.”  
“Afraid they’ll steal your spotlight?”

There were very few times Tooru could remember Hajime with pain in his eyes. He could count them on one hand. One of them was the day he left. He had been crying even as a smile pulled at his lips. And he had not tried to hide his tears. Just like Tooru hadn’t either.

And another one of them was now. That made it five. Hajime looked hurt, if only for a second. Hurt and lost and in so much pain Tooru almost regretted what he said. Almost. Because Hajime had seen him hurting. He had seen him falling apart that night all those years ago. And he had still left. He had made it clear Tooru wasn’t worth it. And that led them here. Now. Both of them hurting yet again.

“Is that really what you think of me?”

His voice wasn’t shaking, wasn’t wavering. It was empty. Completely, utterly empty, or so he thought, before he remembered the first time Hajime had been hurt in front of him. His father had just died, and they were six years old at the time. And he had not cried. He didn’t have any tears left, he had said. In that same empty voice he had just used.

It wasn’t a lack of emotion, it was one part of his mind he had put into words so the ones he wanted to scream were drowned out in the depths of his sorrow.

Back then, he had been trying to hold all the pieces of his broken heart together. Had tried to hold on and let go at the same time, and did the best he could to handle his grief with the strength his father had always praised him for. But now, Tooru couldn’t tell what he was hiding. What he was trying to hold back. And it scared him, because he could always tell. And Hajime wasn’t letting him anymore.

“I think I can’t find you anymore.”

Every part of his heart was hurting, his soul was screaming at him to take it back, his mind was tearing itself apart, and all Hajime could do was smile. He was dying, he was terrified. He didn’t want this anymore, he wished he was anywhere but here, anywhere but here where he had no choice but to come face to face with the fact that not only was his Iwa-chan a criminal, he was someone else now. He was someone Tooru didn’t know. Maybe he was someone Tooru meant nothing to.

And all Hajime could do was smile, hurt and sad. But Tooru had never seen so much determination in his eyes.

“I’ll just have to prove to you that you’re wrong. I promise you I will. After all, I wouldn’t be much of a pirate if I couldn’t steal your heart again.”

Maybe he meant something to Hajime after all. But that would still be up for debate.


	4. You set us up?

“What do you think, Kashi?”  
“Stop calling me that.”  
“Nope.”

Akaashi was once again wondering how he got here in the first place, allowed himself a second of self pity and then gave his answer to his very annoying colleague. They were sitting in the dining room of the Seijoh, their whole team present. And so everyone was looking at him and waiting for his answer with barely contained impatience.

“I think we should accept.”

Hinata actually cheered at that, and stuck his tongue out at Kageyama from across the room. The man scowled back at him, something close to a wince on his face. That guy really despised losing, even if it was just a silly bet with a friend. _Especially_ if that friend happened to be maybe-a-little-bit-more-than-just-a-friend Hinata Shouyo. 

“Shut up, dumbass.”  
“No, _you_ shut up, stupid.”  
“Guys, please, not now.”

Bless Yachi and her eternal patience when dealing with those two. She was always the one breaking their fights. No one knew how she did it and no one dared to ask for her secret in fear that it would break the spell. 

“So that’s three against three.”  
“It’s up to you, Oikawa.”

It looked very clear that the man would rather disappear in a hole in the floor than give them an answer. Too bad that won’t happen anytime soon.

“Kiyoko, answer for me, please.”  
_“I’d rather not. And this is your decision to make.”_

Oikawa huffed in annoyance. He crossed his arms on his chest and pouted. Yahaba had to elbow him in the side to get him to look at his team instead of the floor. Akaashi couldn’t really blame him for his obvious sensitivity on the matter. He never had someone in his life that could compare to who Iwaizumi was in Oikawa’s. So he couldn’t pretend to understand how hard it must be, to finally come face to face with him again after five years and having to choose between helping him or doing his job. It must be difficult to be confronted by someone you knew once and not knowing if they’re still trustworthy or not.

“Oikawa, think about this for a second. If we accept, we put all of your work on the line, all of our _lives_ on the line. We don’t know if they’re being honest. And chances are we won’t know until it’s too late.”   
“But isn’t it worth it? We’re here to fight pirates and bring them to justice, and we get to do just that. And the Shiratorizawa is a threat. You heard Irihata. The Council is recruiting as we speak. But who knows how many lives those murderers will take between now and then? The task force isn’t ready, but ours is.”

Oikawa seemed to be considering Yahaba’s input seriously. Maybe this was enough to win him over. Akaashi hoped so. They only had a few more hours before meeting up with the Aobajohsai’s crew again. And they needed to come up with their final decision before then. 

When they got back to the Seijoh, blindfolded and with Kuroo and Bokuto guiding them, the pirates had left them outside the hangar doors and left before they even had the time to take the blindfolds off. 

At first, Akaashi had found the whole lot of them stupid. The Aobajohsai’s pirates were risking a lot, revealing themselves to them and proposing a deal to which they could very well say no. He had thought that they were stupid, but it wasn’t stupidity. They had been prepared for this. Almost too prepared. They knew where their ship was, made sure their own location remained secret and had even got a way to contact them. They were ready, and they knew how to operate so the Seijoh task force didn’t even have a chance to try and beat them at their own game. Be it in numbers of men or even in gathered information, they had the upper hand.

What got to be the most infuriating, however, was knowing too damn well that their target was here, on this planet, in this town, and knowing that they couldn’t do anything about it without setting off a hundred different alarms that would make sure they lost their current leads on the Aobajohsai in an instant.

“Plus, you saw who they chose to be the team’s leader. Didn’t you promise Ushiwaka you’d beat him to the finish line, Oikawa?”

After they were done explaining everything to their colleagues, they did some research. They couldn’t be sure the crew of the Aobajohsai was being completely honest, and although they knew those idiots wouldn’t outright lie to them about everything, maybe they had left some things out. So after hours of research into the archives of the Council and finding only things they already knew, they decided to risk a call to their employer. Governor Irihata had seemed convinced enough about their lie when he asked them about how they had heard of the Shiratorizawa. Oikawa had said one of his informers had told them about the pirate ship and they feared Aobajohsai and Shiratorizawa would try making an alliance. So here they were, briefed on the entirety of the information gathered by the Council’s spying unit, where Akaashi had worked before being recruited for the task force.

“I did, but this is big. Bigger than me or Ushiwaka. I can’t do this just to spite him.”   
“Wow. I never thought I’d hear you say that, ever.”  
“Who are you and what did you do with our captain?”  
“Oh, shut up, guys, I’m serious.”  
  
But Oikawa was smiling, happy. Akaashi found himself smiling too. Their team might have been a bit dysfunctional and they didn’t know each other that well yet, but it was fun, and they were becoming friends. It was refreshing, for once, to be able to joke around with his colleagues.

But they did have serious matters to attend to, and now. 

“So what do you say? Do we help them or not?”

Oikawa stared at his feet for a moment, his eyes looking at something that likely wasn’t really in front of him. He was probably scanning the whole situation from its beginning to any potential ending, and it was clear he was thinking about what this would mean, for all of them, for the Aobajohsai, for their jobs and the implication their lie would have on all of their careers. There was no way they could tell Irihata about what they were planning. He’d order them to carry on with their own job and leave the Shiratorizawa to the task force assigned to bring it down. Which meant that once the word was out that they helped Aobajohsai take on the Eagle King and his crew, whether they succeeded or not wouldn’t matter. There would be retributions dealt out to them. 

So, this whole thing they were getting into, it was all on Oikawa’s shoulders right now. And he knew it.

“We’ll help them. But don’t let your guard down. And remember, they are our enemies. This doesn’t change the fact that we’ll be back to trying to take them down once we’re done with Shiratorizawa.”  
“Understood!”

Their leader got up from his place at the table and went to the doors. Before he could exit the room, he stopped and looked back at them. Akaashi felt like the man was showing them a part of himself he didn’t even know he still had. He could see his doubts and worries in his eyes, and he felt like for the first time since they met, he was seeing the true Oikawa Tooru, or at least a piece of his mind that wasn’t hidden behind fake smiles and laughter. And even though it was a piece overtaken by a sadness Akaashi could not understand the depths of, he looked at his friend and saw something genuine in his eyes. That had to be worth the risk they were taking.

And who knows, maybe Oikawa will find his smile again, with Iwaizumi Hajime by his side.

“Now, get going. I’m sure you’ll want to enjoy your last few hours of time off before Akaashi and I go meet up with the Aobajohsai crew. We won’t have a lot of it after today.”

☀️

Kyoutani had known Iwaizumi Hajime for almost three years now. He had seen him at his best and had witnessed the few times when he had hit rock bottom. He knew the man hated being told what to do, but hated it even more when he was underestimated and told he wouldn’t get through to his goals. He knew his captain had only ever made one promise in his life, and had only learned recently about what it was and what it meant for him, as well as for the man he loved. 

And Kyoutani, knowing all of that, could not understand why his captain was being such a coward.

He would’ve asked the man himself about it, but Iwaizumi had retired to his room early in the evening, most probably to go attend his own pity party to which he was the only guest. So, Kyoutani settled for the next best thing: he asked Iwaizumi’s oldest friends, Matsukawa and Hanamaki. 

“See, Kyoutani, Iwaizumi only has two mindsets. There’s the courageous Iwaizumi Hajime that would go against this universe’s most monstrous minds just to save a kitten. Then, there’s Iwaizumi Hajime, who has the emotional capacity and the backbone of a strawberry.”  
“Strawberries don’t have backbones.”  
“Exactly.”  
“What my dear Issei is trying to say is that Iwaizumi isn’t good at dealing with his own emotions. Or rather, he’s not good at showing them.”  
“He has no problem being angry at me.”  
“That’s because anger seems to be an easy one for him. And let’s be honest, he’s had practice.”  
  
Hanamaki dodged his kick with a laugh before carrying on.

“Like I was saying, our little Iwaizumi has troubles showing his emotions. So when the love of his life that’s been hell bent on finding and taking him down for the past five years after he broke both of their hearts actually makes good on his promise, it’s no surprise he might not know exactly how to react.”  
“Basically, Iwaizumi is being a coward and not facing his own feelings for Oikawa because he’s terrified and would rather take it slow so as to not appear too invested all at once.”  
“Okay. Thanks.”  
“Did you hear that, Mattsun? He said thanks! Our baby is growing up so fast!”  
“Don’t make me punch you.”  
“You’re no fun.”  
“Anyway, glad we could help.”  
“Now come on, we got some work to do. Those pots won’t fill themselves up with oil on their own.”  
“Sugawara is going to kill you.”  
“But it’ll be sooo worth it.”

Kyoutani had known Iwaizumi for almost three years now, and he knew a bunch of things about the man. Like that he was the most forgiving person he’s ever met, and that he loved talking about the sea back on his home planet and how the water had been an unforgiving cold. But there were some things he had to learn about the man on his own. Things that had left scars on his captain, and things that brought a smile on his lips he’d try to hide from them so he could keep his moment of happiness for himself. And Kyoutani had never brought it up. He knew why the man tried to hide it. He just wished his captain would realize that he didn’t have to, and that keeping those little things to himself didn’t make him selfish. It just made him human.

There were mornings when Kyoutani would wake up and find Iwaizumi training in the ship’s sparring area, punching his way through the training dummies with only the anger in his eyes to rival the anger behind his fist. And there were times when he would walk by his captain’s room and hear an old voicemail message playing, always the same, and he’d know it was painting a smile on the man’s lips that was never anything but genuine. All of that, each and everyone of those little things that made up the life of his friend came to his mind when he saw the way Iwaizumi looked at Oikawa that day at the rendezvous point. And he couldn’t help but wonder why their fearless captain would lose any more time being scared when it was clear the man he loved looked at him the same way he did.

☀️

“So, I guess you’ve made your decision.”  
“Yes.”  
“Will you help us?”  
“We will. But we want to add something to the bargain.”  
“What is it?”  
“You won’t betray us, before, during or after our alliance. And we’ll promise the same.”  
“... deal.”

☀️

Meeting up with the Seijoh task force five times a week for almost a month now taught Hajime some very important things. One was that those guys were all freaking geniuses. It was almost scary how good they were at what they did. Hajime was more than convinced that each and everyone one of the Aobajohsai’s main crew had found their match in both skills and talent. Second was that Oikawa Tooru should never be underestimated, regarding both his abilities... and his pettiness. Well, he really wasn’t one to talk, but still.

“You can’t possibly think we can pull this off.”  
“I know the Seijoh can.”  
“Tooru, this is almost suicidal!”  
“No it’s not.”  
“Yes it is.”

Tooru looked at him from across the table, narrowed eyes and pout on his lips. He tilted his head to the side, narrowed his eyes even more and finally declared:

“You’re doubting my plan.”  
“Yes, I am.”  
“You shouldn’t be. I’m better at this than you are.”

Makki stifled a laugh behind his hand and elbowed Mattsun in the arm to get his attention. He pointed at them and smiled over at his boyfriend. Watching the both of them argue had quickly become a newly discovered entertainment for most of the Aobajohsai’s crew, almost like watching a new episode of your favorite show on TV every Monday evening. Except this seemed to happen on the daily, every time Iwaizumi and Oikawa were left alone without either Kuroo’s supervision or Akaashi’s.

Makki almost wanted to yell at said vice-captain to come back later, when they had their full of their daily favorite entertainment. He didn’t, of course, but only because he knew he would’ve been ignored. Akaashi marched into the room and scanned everyone present, stopping on Oikawa before pointedly staring at Iwaizumi. It seemed like he knew what was going on before even another word could be said by the two captains. Yahaba was behind him, giving their colleague a disapproving look.

Normally, things from here on out would proceed like this: Akaashi would clear his throat, effectively gaining the quarreling lovers’ attention. Then, he’d glare at them both, would quirk an eyebrow and say something along the lines of ‘if I hear anything about you two arguing again, I will make sure someone else is put in charge of the planning. And believe me when I say you do not want to lose any more credit than you already have or else we might just start a mutiny and throw you both out. Understood?’

To which he would get a morose ‘understood’ from Oikawa as well as Iwaizumi, who had soon caught on to the fact that no one, and I mean no one, wanted to be on the receiving end of Akaashi’s carefully crafted and murderously truthful insults. He had almost made one of their informers on Dyonis cry after he had tried to feed them lies when they visited his planet. It had not been pretty. 

But this time, both of their stupid captains didn’t even notice Akaashi and Yahaba’s entrance, and did not pay attention to the man even after he cleared his throat twice. No, it seemed this time, they were past the point of merely arguing and full on glaring and planning each other’s demise.

“Like hell you’re better than me! I’ve been doing this for seven years!”  
“I was literally hired to do this job. They picked me out of 85 other applicants. And I did find you, didn’t I? Seems like at least I’m going to be keeping my promises. Unlike you. It’s a bit sad, don’t you think? What would 8 years old Hajime think of you now?”

If Iwaizumi was impressed by Oikawa’s professional feat, he didn’t show it, instead settling on a smirk. The pride gleaming in the other man’s chocolate eyes soon made way to confusion. Had he not made his point across? Iwaizumi was supposed to be impossibly annoyed right now, and perhaps even irritated and angry. But he had that stupid smile on his lips. That smile he first discovered when Hajime had caught his first cicada in that net of his when they were 7 years old. That grin that still made a thousand butterflies wake up in Tooru’s stomach and still managed to make his head spin and his missing heart race. 

Makki’s shit-eating grin soon faded into a nervous grimace, mirrored on Mattsun’s face as well. They knew where this was going. It had been an unspoken rule the minute they came up with the idea, something they had all known never to bring up again once it was all settled. They were trying to forge an alliance, however temporary it would be, after all. And so the Aobajohsai’s main crew had silently decided that it would do no good to bring up their… first arrangements… in front of any of Seijoh’s task force members.

“Hum… Iwaizumi… remember that thing we talked about?”  
“Not now, Mattsun.”  
“Bro, you really need to let this one go.”  
“Why would I? After all, it’s never been a good thing to keep secrets from your _friends_. And I wouldn’t want to be the one losing to this idiot here.” 

The way Iwaizumi said friends must have ticked Oikawa off, and the insult didn’t help in the least. He was gripping the edge of the table so hard his knuckles were white, and their captain was still smiling at him. Oh, this wasn’t going to be good at all. Makki thought maybe if they ran for it, Issei and him could make it to the door and hide until the carnage was over. The idea was very tempting. Like, very very tempting.

But Iwaizumi was his friend. His stupid, childish and sometimes impossibly rude friend, but his friend nonetheless. And he couldn't abandon him to face the consequences of his own mistakes alone, now could he?

Oh, right, he could.

He wouldn’t, because he did not want to be responsible for the murder of his captain. But he could.

Oikawa was almost growling when he talked next, his usually soft voice nowhere to be heard. He looked murderous, like he already knew he wasn’t going to appreciate the next bit of information Iwaizumi would grant him. Like he could already tell he would want to rip his ex-best friend/boyfriend/whatever the fuck they were now’s head off.

“And what could you possibly be keeping a secret from us, Hajime.”

Iwaizumi answered way too casually for his own good, but Makki would only tell him that later on, when he’d be hearing about all of this again as if he hadn’t even been here to start with. Just like Makki would be telling Hajime that he really was expecting more from his captain and friend. They were all expecting more from him, starting with the fact that no matter how much Oikawa was getting on his nerves, his childishness, idiotic tendencies and uncontrolled emotions shouldn’t get the better of him like this. Even if his promise was brought up.

“You didn’t really think you got all that info on the Aobajohsai without us having a hand in it, did you?”  
“What?”

Hajime smiled at Tooru. And that was his undoing. Both of theirs, for that matter. 

“We set you up in Cania. That intel the emperor had, he bought it from an unknown source thinking he could sell it to the highest bidder. Only he didn’t know we sold it to him and made sure you’d learn about it.”

One would have thought that after learning such a thing, Oikawa’s face would be red from anger. Only they’d be wrong, because now his face was as white as snow, as if he was seconds away from dropping dead in front of them. 

“W-what?” 

It was when the stutter reached Iwaizumi’s ears that the severity of what he had admitted to finally dawned on him. He too turned a worrying shade of white despite his tanned skin, and soon the two idiots were staring at each other, dumbstruck.  
  
“Oh. I shouldn’t have said that.”  
“What did you say?”  
“Tooru, I… please listen to me, I-”  
“Who?”  
“... Watari Shinji.”

A gasp reminded everyone of the two men standing by the door, having witnessed everything. Yahaba seemed on the verge of tears, and Akaashi looked ready to kill. Hajime knew why, of course. Yahaba was a doctor at the station they had sent Watari at. Having studied medicine at his old Academy had made him the perfect candidate for their undercover plan, and so Watari was sent to the same unit as their intended target’s doctor and friend. 

Both of them had become good friends, and soon Yahaba was introducing Watari to Oikawa. It had been easy, from that point on, to start the second part of their plan. By then, everyone knew the Canians had a brand new addition to their collection of information, in the form of very precious and priceless intel on the Aobajohsai. Their undercover agent just had to pretend to have heard rumors on where the Canian empire was storing their network collected from everywhere in the galaxy, and Oikawa, never one to distrust Yahaba’s friends, had listened to him. After some research and hacking with Kenma’s help, Watari was proven right.

A move back home to work for his mother’s private medical practice and tearful goodbyes later, Watari was back on the Aobajohsai and Oikawa Tooru was on his way to steal from some of the most dangerous and fearsome enemies of the Council. Checkmate, or so they thought. Because Iwaizumi Hajime could really be an idiot sometimes. 

“You… you set us up from the start?”  
“Yes.”  
  
Yahaba looked at Oikawa, horrified. He probably blamed himself for all of this, since he’d been the first one to trust Watari and introduced him to his friend. Tooru looked back at him, worried. They had what seemed to be a silent conversation only the two of them could comprehend. The doctor was holding back tears of frustration, and his leader was comforting him the best he could right now, five feet away from each other. Akaashi, on his part, was glaring at everyone in the room in what seemed like some sort of mix between disappointment and fury.  
  
Soon, Tooru was looking back at Hajime.

“You’re telling me… you’re telling me that I fought against a fucking shit load of highly trained guards in the middle of enemy territory with no back up whatsoever, and almost got my face blown up not once, but twice, because you… you just decided that after 5 fucking years of running away from me, you were ready to face me? Is that it, Hajime?”  
“… yes.”  
“Akaashi, can I murder him now?”  
“I’ll help you hide the bodies.”  
“Thank you.”

Hajime rolled his eyes even through his mix of guilt and uneasiness. 

“First, we’re supposed to be allies now. And you are in my ship. If you do attack, I can guarantee you won’t make it out of here alive. Second, I am sorry for having had to use something so… extreme to get your attention. But we did need you to find us, and soon.”  
“Are you saying I was taking too long?”  
“I’m saying you needed to find us now, not in another five years when you were ready to face me.”  
“You better shut up now, or I _will_ kill you.”  
“Again, not happening, unless you want to fight your way out of here.”  
“Don’t tempt me.”

Both captains glared at each other for a moment longer before Hajime sighed.

“For what it’s worth, I am sorry about setting you up. Now, we don’t have all day. Can we get back to planning?”  
“No.”  
“No?”  
“Not right now.”

Tooru made his way to the door with clenched fists and didn’t look back once. When he was at Yabaha’s side, he put his hand on the doctor’s shoulder and led him out of the room. Akaashi was still glaring at them all, still disappointed and furious. Still ready to fight if his friends needed him to. 

“We’ll meet up tomorrow, same time. But they need time to cool down. I think you do to.”  
  
And with that, the Seijoh was taking off from the ground, leaving the Aobajohsai behind in the dust. Hajime could still remember Tooru’s eyes tearing through his soul when the bitter words left his mouth. 

“You… you set us up from the start?”

Man, how did he manage to make all of this so much worse in the span of an hour?

One look at the normally carefree men who he called his best friends promised him an earful he would remember for the rest of his days. And he knew he deserved it, but damn, he would’ve taken Tooru’s assassination attempt over their scolding any day.

☀️

“... Tooru?”  
“Don’t call me that.”  
“Why not? I did before.”  
“You either called me Tooru or Shittykawa. And that was when we were friends. I’d take Shittykawa over anything else right now. Anyway, what do you want?”  
“I just… I wanted to say sorry. For yesterday.”

Hajime chanced a glance at the man beside him, who had not uttered a word in two hours except for the few ‘can you pass me the pen?’ here and there. That was so unlike Tooru he had no idea how to react. So he went for sheepish. Normally, that would work, back when they were… back when they were friends, and still shared the same world. The very few times Hajime had done something to anger Tooru, he’d say sorry a thousand times and would not stop offering hugs. Right now, Hajime was pretty sure he’d get shot if he went for a hug, so a sorry it is.

“And what exactly are you apologizing for?”

The most unnerving thing about this whole mess right now was that Tooru wasn’t even mad. Or at least he didn’t show his anger, settling instead on some sort of calm and cold indifference that had Hajime’s teeth gritting. His voice was unusually detached, without a hint of emotion. He would’ve preferred vengeful fury or better yet, that Tooru made true of his words and did try to kill him, over any of this. At least then, he’d know how to react, how to proceed, how to analyse and come up with exactly the kind of response he knew would help Tooru calm down.

But it seemed the man sitting at his side was well aware he would expect anger, and so settled for detached boredom to spite him. 

“For everything. I… didn’t mean to tell you about Watari, and I shouldn’t have been such an asshole about it either.”  
  
That got Tooru to spare him a glance. A surprised, confused and disbelieving glance.

“You didn’t mean to tell me about Watari?”  
“No, of course not, I didn’t want you to fr...”

Hajime saw the trap too late. Waaaay too late. It slapped him in the face and he could just stare at it, dumbfounded, and wait for the inevitable come back that would have him drop on the floor, K.O. 

“I mean, I would’ve told you at some point, just not _now_ , you know...”  
“Didn't you say it’s never a good thing to keep secrets from your friends? I thought you learned your lesson last time, but apparently not.”  
“Tooru-”  
“ _Don’t_.”  
“... Oikawa, please, I just didn’t want things to be even more difficult than they already were.”  
“I’m glad you had such foresight. A shame it just took you getting angry to start spilling out all of your secrets.”  
“Well, good thing I was so angry for no reason at all, then, hum?”  
  
The glare he got at that was finally, finally angry. Perhaps that should have been a red flag in his book, but he was too satisfied at the moment to realize that.

“Yes, you're absolutely right.”

After that, both sat in heavy silence and dived back into their work. For once, Hajime wasn’t glad for the silence around him. It just kept on telling him things he already knew. Like how much Tooru must hate him right now, and how much he must be regretting accepting the deal that led them here. How much he wished he had arrested him, or come up with a plan to bring him down before they made the bargain. 

“You said you needed me to find you now, and not when I would be ready to face you again.”   
“... yes, that’s what I said.”  
“What did you mean?”

It took a second for the words to register in his head, and for his mind to truly understand them. So when he finally answered, Tooru was staring at him, indifferent once more.

“I know you. Better than anyone. I know that if you had really wanted to find me, you would’ve done so years ago.”

A glare was sent his way, but it wasn’t burning with anger, it was more like… wonder carefully hiding by a mask of frustration. Tooru didn’t want to let go of his end of this now, and that meant he’d show nothing but fury for a while longer, until he could tell it was okay to leave everything except the truth down.

“Is that really what you think?”  
“Yes.”  
“What if you’re wrong?”  
“I told you. If I’m wrong, then I’ll just have to steal your heart again.”  
  
Tooru averted his eyes, almost turning completely away from Hajime so he could hide the red on his cheeks. He wanted to smile, then. He knew he couldn’t, shouldn’t and wouldn’t, but he wanted to. 

Hajime knew, of course. After all, silence always told him everything, be it intricate lies or simple truths. And this, he didn’t really know to which category it belonged to, maybe both, but it was enough to prove him right.

“Oh my God.”  
“What?”  
“Oh my God, Hajime, I got it!”  
“What?”

Tooru was looking back at him with a smile in his eyes. He was standing up now, his chair almost falling because of the sudden movement, but he didn’t seem to care one bit. He was laughing, uncontrollable giggles leaving his mouth, and he was scribbling something on the sheet of paper in front of him at a pace Hajime was sure was not humanly possible. If they had been in a cartoon, or even in a manga, Tooru’s pen would have been on fire. His excitement was palpable and soon Hajime was smiling too, even if it was for reasons he still didn’t know about.

“I got it! I know how we’re going to defeat the Shiratorizawa!”


	5. Do DNA tests sound familiar to you, or are you just that dumb?

“We’re going to use their wild card against them.”  
“Tendou Satori is known for his rather particular skill set. He’s a master of identity theft and has been selling to many black markets in different sectors for over a decade now. His combat skills are also not to be underestimated. He can go toe to toe with Akaashi and I.”  
“How are you going to get a guy like that on your side?”  
“He owes me one.”  
“Tendou Satori, criminal and thief, owes you one?”

Tooru looked almost insulted by the question, but on what ground, Hajime could not tell. He just hoped he knew what he was doing. They couldn’t mess this up, they only had one chance to stop the Shiratorizawa before they knew they were onto them. If their only shot went wrong, it made no doubt in anyone’s mind that the only course of action those criminals could take would be to disappear and bide their time. And if they could get someone like Tendou on their side, they’d be particularly hard to find.

“Yes, he owes me one. I was working a case with Ushiwaka and he was our informer. He’s a surprisingly good spy. One night, he was on his way to make his report and the guards almost caught him, which would have been especially bad since we’ve all been warned to shoot him on sight.”  
“Isn’t he just accused of identity theft? To be shot on sight seems a little... extreme.”  
“Yeah, I thought so too. But he did steal governor Washijo’s personal codes and files, used it to access classified information on very important military projects and then erased said projects and all the backups because he thought, and I quote, that ‘the engineers that made those things deserve to have their hearts broken’.”  
“And how exactly do you know he thought that?”

For once in his life, Tooru was speechless. He opened his mouth and was about to answer, but then stopped. Which meant that what would come would probably be something the man either regretted doing, or regretted having to tell them about.

Hajime could feel the headache coming.

“Well, he did say so to the cameras in governor Washijo’s office. But he was actually saying that to, well, me, because I… well, you see, that one time, I...”  
“Please tell me you didn’t help the Guess Monster erase those projects.”  
“Well then I won’t tell you.”  
“Tooru!”

Yahaba seemed about to get up from his chair and start hitting his friend, Akaashi was very obviously wondering if he should be arresting his colleague and most of the Seijoh task force looked horrified to learn such a thing from their superior officer. Tooru at least had the decency to look sheepish.

“In my defense, not that I need to explain myself to you, but those projects were not going to do any good. They were weapons of destruction and the military was doing illegal experiments and tests on an endangered species of bird from a sector under empire reign that was doing everything they could to save it. I couldn’t just not do anything!”  
“You got Tendou involved.”  
“It was for a good reason. And you said yourself that the guy is only accused of identity theft. It’s not like Oikawa was helping the Eagle King.”

Anyone that knew Kyoutani also knew that Tooru had him at ‘tests on an endangered species of bird’. And they knew all too well that from here on out, the Seijoh’s captain would have ‘Mad Dog’ Kyoutani Kentarou on his side of pretty much every argument and fight. Hajime had never regretted all of his life’s decisions as much as right now.

If the Seijoh task force was surprised the usually quiet and scary guy with strange hair had actually talked, they didn’t show it. Tooru did smile at him, however, his own version of a ‘thanks’.

“So, like I was saying, he owes me one since I helped him escape from the guards and get to Ushiwaka.”  
“Wait, hold up. Are you actually friends with him, or something? Seems like you do a lot of stuff together. Illegal stuff, might I add.”  
“We’re not friends. We’re just acquaintances that happen to be on the same side of pretty much a lot of things. Besides the whole… pirate thing...”

When pretty much everyone in the room had raised an eyebrow at him in mock disbelief, he sighed. He was expecting such a reaction, of course. The military special agent leading the task force supposed to bring down a pirate ship was friends with a pirate himself, and a known one at that. He was actually surprised Hajime still hadn’t exploded. Or sent a punch his way.

But Tooru knew no matter how much he’d want to punch him, he wouldn’t. Because he knew what he did for a living wasn’t what angered him, but how he got there. And he knew that if Tooru had helped a pirate not one, but two times, then the guy couldn’t be much of a bad guy.

“So, your plan is to get this guy to go undercover in the Shiratorizawa? How do you know he’ll say yes?”  
“Oh, don’t worry about it. I don't have to ask him, I think he already is in the Shiratorizawa.”  
“... what?”

Tooru smiled. Everyone started screaming. Chaos seemed too much of an understatement to describe the events that took place in the room. Yahaba was glaring at everyone, as if he’d rather die than be here right now. Akaashi was now on the verge of arresting his captain for treason, Bokuto trying to talk him out of it. Kenma was apparently falling asleep on top of his tablet and Kuroo was trying to get everyone to shut up so as to not wake him up. Kyoutani had resumed his role and was now growling and looking mad more than ever. Hanamaki and Matsukawa were filming the entire thing because ‘someone needs to immortalize this whole mess we’ve created’ and Hajime could very well be turning into a strawberry right now. Mattsun would tell you so, anyway, in the comment of his masterpiece of a video, and would also tell you to watch his previous one to fully get the complexity of his stupid analogy regarding this surprising comparison.

Suddenly, a chair was hurled at Tooru’s head by an unknown source and as he ducked to narrowly avoid receiving the projectile with his face, he noticed something. Hajime might have been red like a strawberry, but he still had yet to react beyond that.

“I know I’m going to regret that, but seriously, Iwa-chan, I was expecting a much more… lively reaction from you.”

Green eyes as beautiful as galaxies stared into his own, and Hajime was taking a deep breath, closing his eyes and opening them again. He started walking towards his best friend, who had the sudden urge to run away. He didn’t, of course, because he was not afraid at all. Not at all. The Aobajohsai’s captain was standing in front of him now, and even though Tooru held five centimeters over him, he felt like Hajime was two times his height right now.

Unbearable silence gave way to a sigh, and he was looking into worried green eyes.

“I trust you. If you think you can get Tendou on your side, I’ll be there to help you. I’ve got your back. Now, how exactly are you going to get in contact with him?”

Getting over his surprise and actually processing what Hajime said took him a second longer than he wished it had. Warmth took over his missing heart for a second before he willed it to go away, fought it to be buried away in his memories where it belonged, for now.

His fake smile was blatant on his lips, but only Hajime could ever tell.

“I know where to find him. He’s always there at this time of the year.”

☀️

“Are you sure this is going to work?”  
“Of course.”  
“Let me put this another way: are you sure we’re all going to make it out of here?”  
“I’m 83% sure we’re all going to make it out of here.”  
“Well, consider me officially scared.”  
“Shut up, Kuroo.”  
“Don’t worry. This is foolproof.”  
“Yeah, listen to Oikawa. He’s always right.”  
“Thank you, Hinata.”  
“You’re welcome!”  
“Stop screaming, dumbass!”  
“You stop screaming, stupid Kageyama!”  
“Guys, really not the time for that.”  
“Sorry, Yachi.”

Hajime could almost see the eyes of the various members of the Seijoh task force rolling. Apparently, even constant exposure to those two’s fighting wasn’t enough to get rid of the feeling of affliction that squeezed itself into your head every time Kageyama Tobio and Hinata Shouyo were given a reason to insult each other.

At least they had Yachi to break up their arguing.

“Heads up. They’re here.”

The first thing they heard was excited chatter and laughter. Then, the doors opened and the crew of the Shiratorizawa stepped out of the small hangar. Most were carrying bags. All of them had at least one gun on them or some sort of weapon, and… did this guy really have a katana strapped to his back? Yes, yes he did. Well, talk about bringing a knife to a gunfight. A really big knife.

At the head of the group was a very tall man who’s entire face was hidden behind a strange mask. The guy even wore gloves and a coat, in this weather. Hajime could only imagine how much he must be dying under all of those layers of clothes. And all of that to conceal his identity? He sure didn’t want to be recognized.

Tendou Satori was a step behind him, chatting loudly with Semi Eita, the Shiratorizawa’s best sniper and former hitman. He was rumored to have never missed a shot in his entire career.

Shirabu Kenjiro had walked up to them and was talking in a hushed tone, standing close to Semi. They seemed to get along, those two. They’d have to watch out for them. Behind them stood Goshiki Tsutomu and Ohira Reon, both walking in complete silence. They seemed relaxed, relaxed enough that Hajime knew they had no idea they were getting ambushed right now. Good. They wouldn’t see it coming until it was too late.

The rest of the crew was behind them, and they were the ones laughing and joking around. They too were not nervous one bit, and most seemed to be only working members of the Shiratorizawa. Those people were not criminals, or at least not like the Shiratorizawa’s main crew. They’d be easy to beat but also easy to replace, so they shouldn’t be focusing on them for too long, lest they lost their shot with the higher ups of the pirate crew.

Hajime was just about to say exactly that into the communication device they had dubbed good enough for this mission, a finger already pressed on the small button of his earpiece, but someone beat him to it. Someone named Oikawa Tooru.

“Remember, we’re here to bring down the main guys. Focus on the ones up front. Kageyama, you ready?”  
“Yes.”  
“Perfect. Take the shot.”

The words rang in all of their heads like the everlasting sound of bells, just like the click of the trigger being pulled and the sharp noise of a bullet piercing through the air faster than lighting.

“Sniper, watch out!”

Semi Eita had tackled his captain to the ground, the bullet narrowly missing his shoulder. Everyone had reached for their guns the second Shirabu had screamed and the fastest already had their weapons pulled. Most were trying to pinpoint where the shot had been fired from, but it would be useless. Kageyama had already moved. Just like they all did.

It was quick and efficient, and soon they were no longer hiding on the rooftops and behind windows in the buildings, but standing on the ground, taking cover from the shots fired at them behind crates and metal containers that could protect them at least for now. They began firing too, and so the fight was on.

“Hajime!”

Someone was pulling him behind the edge of a building. He was about to push that someone away when he heard the bullet being embedded into the wall his shoulder was against. Tooru’s eyes scanned him over and when he was sure he was alright, he let go of him and was shooting their enemies from an angle with the wall that shielded him best from incoming bullets.

“Don’t thank me.”

Hajime rolled his eyes and got back into position, this time minding their opponents coming up from the right. Tooru and him were back to back, and it felt so natural to have him there, fighting by his side and having his back, just like he was doing. It felt like he could finally breathe, knowing he was there, right there with him. Tooru was breathing too, cursing when he was out of ammo and muffling a small ‘thank you’ when Hajime reached over with a magazine in hand.

“Now we’re even.”  
“Yeah, as if.”

They didn’t talk after that, and at some point they started running. Their plan, although they had been discovered, had not changed. Kageyama had shot, the Eagle King was still standing, and Bokuto still had a rocket launcher. The man aimed at the weak spot of the building, just where they had planned for the rocket to explode so the roof of the hangar would collapse. The whole world seemed to have held its breath, waiting for the trigger to be pulled with just as much impatience as them. But then earth and skies were shaking, heavy metal doors falling with a clank and old wood burning from the explosion. The Shiratorizawa was buried under big metal rafters and more burning wood, and so part two of their plan was a success. The smoke around them wasn’t thick enough to blind them and it soon disappeared.

“Fall back!”

The Shiratorizawa crew listened and they were retreating behind a building they had been pushed towards, the old thing barely still standing. Hajime was panting by now, handgun still in hand. He reached for more ammo and his second, already loaded gun. His holster was empty of the weapon. Instead, there was an empty magazine. Tooru was not beside him anymore.

He chuckled, amused more than annoyed. He had asked for that one, didn’t he? He loaded his handgun and regrouped with Kyoutani and Akaashi. All of their men were slowly circling the building their target was now standing in. He could see movements inside behind the windows of the first story. They were panicking, it seemed, all running around like desperate idiots. That could play in their advantage, but also to their disadvantage, if they weren’t careful. Stupid men did stupid things when they couldn’t see any way out.

Stupid things like blowing up the damn building!

“Watch out!”

The next few seconds were filed with more smoke and more burning wood than before, and although the explosion hadn’t been enough to really put them in any danger, Hajime was still sent flying through the air, falling back on the ground a few feet away from his initial position. He had landed okay, hadn’t been hurt, and as he checked for his friends, saw that the same could be said for them. Everyone he could see right now got up on steady feet and had their guns raised once again.

And so they made their way closer to the remains of the old building with eyes that could only make out shadows and silhouettes through the smoke and ears that only heard a constant buzzing sound. Hajime stepped closer to his goal than he had before and kept walking toward the old paint and wood reduced to ashes and wreckage.

He saw someone making his way through the smoke, a blurry line becoming more and more clear with each meter crossed. He saw the blurry line become a silhouette and then a man, coughing loudly. The man was right in front of him, hunched over and still coughing lungfuls of smoke. He fell forward, and Hajime caught him before he could really think about what he was doing.

A trigger was pulled, a bullet no one could hear was shot, and the man was coughing blood, dead the next instant.

“Man down!”  
“Iwaizumi, take cover!”

He was still holding the dead body, words dying in his throat before they could make it to the tip of his tongue. He had meant to ask the man if he was alright, had meant to try and reassure him, had meant to put him to safety so he could at least regain his footing. It didn’t matter that the man was an enemy. It didn’t matter, because right now he was just someone without any weapon that had been caught in the explosion and that had no idea what was happening right now. He was just a scared man that had tried to walk away. A scared man that probably had nothing to do with the Shiratorizawa except for the few credits he got from working for them. A man that wasn’t a fighter, just a worker desperate enough for a job to walk right into hell.

A hand was pulling him away from the dead man’s body. He didn’t really know why he tried to hold on, why it was so difficult to let go. He just kept thinking that there had to be something he could do. There had to be something that could make this okay, that could heal the man. He had to do something, he had to at least try, he couldn’t just leave him there!

But the arms pulling him away wouldn’t hear his silent thoughts as loud as the ringing in his ears. And so he watched the dead man become a silhouette once more, and then a blurry line. The smoke took him away from his eyes, cast a cold blanket on them both. On a dead body and on eyes full of dread.

“-zumi! … -mi… Iwaizumi!”

He looked over his shoulder. Kuroo was there, looking over him, dragging him away from speeding bullets and fighting men. They passed Bokuto, who still had his rocket launcher, although it was strapped to his back and he had a shotgun in hand instead. Akaashi was standing at his side, and they looked okay. As okay as they could be. Hajime searched for Makki and Mattsun when he heard the signature scoff somewhere to his right. And there they were, shoulder to shoulder, perfectly in sync as always. They were shooting and cursing and fighting together. And they were all the other needed. They were keeping each other safe. They were giving everything they had because it meant they would both walk out of here and they would both be laughing together again tomorrow.

Kuroo had dragged him behind a nearby wall that somehow was still standing. He lowered him to the ground and put his hands on his shoulders. Hajime looked up at him and saw his worried gaze. He knew his friend had seen what had happened. Knew Kuroo understood what he was feeling. And that he understood there was nothing he could do right now to make any of this right.

But he did try, and that had to matter for something.

“Hey. It wasn’t your fault. There was nothing you could do.”

Hajime wanted to answer. What he’d say, he didn’t know. Hell, he had no idea of what to even think right now. He just wanted to shoot him. That murderer that called himself a King, a pirate, when he was nothing else but an usurper. Who could do something like this? Who could even dare think about something like this? That man was one of them, and they shot him trying to get to him! How was this even possible? Hajime would never shoot someone in his crew. He’d never shoot his family, no matter what, no matter how much it’d cost him. He didn’t even want to think about it.

“Hajime. Hajime, look at me.”

Kuroo never called him by his given name. It wasn’t because they weren’t close, or because he didn’t want him to. They just… never really did. Everyone in the ship, except for Makki and Mattsun who were dating, called each other by their family name, it just felt more natural that way. Guess old habits do die hard.

So if Kuroo was calling him by his first name, then it probably would be best to listen.

“You have to wake up, man. Come on! We need you right now, we need you. Me and Bokuto and Kyoutani, and all the others, we can’t do this without you. And Oikawa, he needs you too!”  
“He’d never forgive me if I gave up now.”

Kuroo smiled.

“Yeah, exactly. And you want to keep your shot, right? It’s already a pretty bad one anyway.”  
“I know.”

Hajime allowed himself to smile too. It was a pitiful, tired and devastated smile, but it got to count for something.

He was getting back on his feet. He knew he had to. Kuroo was right. His crew needed him, just like he needed them. He couldn’t call himself a captain if he abandoned them when they were depending on him. He couldn’t call himself a captain if he didn’t have their backs just like they always had his. They were always there for him. Even if it was when he tried to mend his relationship with the leader of the task force that was dedicated to bringing them down, which is all he could ask for.

So he was on his feet again and he was fighting again, if it meant he had a shot at bringing everybody back home with him when all of this was over once and for all.

Kuroo and him emerged from behind the wall and aimed handguns and assault rifles back at the blown up building where the Shiratorizawa was still hiding. The smoke had cleared, for the most part, and now aiming was much easier. Seeing just how much destruction the bomb had caused was also easier now. The whole facade of the building was gone, crumbled to pieces on the ground. The second story had fell down on the first and their opponents had no other choice but to hide behind the building instead of inside once again. The few people that had actually survived the explosion were still trying to reach the doors to get out. Most of the Shiratorizawa’s main crew had run out of the place before it blew up. Apparently, some idiot had tried to draw everyone’s attention to the explosion so the captain could have a chance at a swift escape. While the reason behind his act was somewhat admirably loyal, the means to the get to that desired end were more than extreme. Not only did it endanger his own comrades, but it did bring both sides at a disadvantage, since no one could see through the smoke.

“Iwaizumi! We’re going to try and surround them from the rooftops.”  
“You do that, we’ll keep their attention here. But you better hurry up, they’ll start trying to fall back into the city.”

When planning this ambush, Tooru had explained that the place they’d be waiting for the Shiratorizawa at was deserted. It was a ghost town in the middle of nowhere, and that’s exactly why the Eagle King and his crew made it one of their regular hideouts. The only inhabited place near where they were was a little town almost a thousand miles away from this one. The citizens of this part of the planet had all fled when the floods had become too much to bear with. The whole continent was almost empty nowadays.

They’d been careful not to push their enemies back into the flooded streets of the city, which might as well have been a labyrinth. The Shiratorizawa’s small hangar was on an edge of the town, a little higher up from the rest, left untouched by the water. So far, they had all kept the fight on that very edge. If they could maintain things that way, everything would be fine. They could keep what little upper hand they had since the explosion.

“Incoming!”

Bokuto was diving over the wall to get to safety. Akaashi was right behind him, although he did not dove. Hanamaki and Matsukawa had followed Kuroo and the others to the rooftops, or else they would be getting to safety too. Hinata joined them a second after Kageyama, both men standing behind the wall to their right. They shared a look. Everyone seemed alright, if a little bruised. But Kageyama was trying to catch a glance on the edge of his hiding spot, worried eyes scanning the scene bullets still rained down upon.

“Kageyama, what is it?”  
“He’s not here.”

It dawned on Hajime and the next second he was looking over their brick wall too, his heart racing and his tattoos stinging. Panic clouded the edges of his vision, but he couldn’t calm down. He couldn’t calm down, no, not when he wasn’t anywhere to be seen. He hadn’t gone with Kuroo, Hajime was pretty sure of that. Then, where was he?

Oh, there he was, coming from behind the very building their enemies were hiding at, running like hell towards them with something in his hands. How the fuck was he not filled with bullets by now, no one knew.

Tooru jumped behind the wall and a second later, bullets embedded themselves into the wood, where his head had been. Sighing very audibly, he looked over at his colleagues and friends, an easy smile on his lips.

“Hi.”

Hajime could only stare at him even more, mouth open like a fish and a hundred questions swirling around in his mind. Bokuto was no better, and Akaashi did look impressed, although it didn’t last more than a few seconds. Hinata was gasping from his hiding spot and Kageyama was looking relieved.

“You just… where were you?”  
“Were you inside?”  
“Is that… is that _his mask_?”

Tooru looked down at what he had in hand and smiled, mischievous. Hajime didn’t know if he wanted to punch him or kiss him. Probably the second one, although that was sure to get him punched. Oikawa Tooru was holding the damn mask they had all seen the Eagle King wearing. He had apparently sneaked on the other side of the building where the Shiratorizawa's crew was and had stolen the captain’s mask in a fight. And now he had it in his hands, victorious.

“Did you get him?”  
“No, Semi was there. And he’s one hell of a fighter. But I brought you a souvenir!”  
“That went better than I expected. You didn’t, by chance, catch a glimpse of his face?”  
“Unfortunately, he was wearing an image inducer. I didn’t have time to try and snatch it too.”  
“How do you know he was wearing one?”  
“Well, as far as I know, I don’t have an evil twin who’s 8 centimetres taller than me.”

Tooru handed the mask over to Akaashi, who took it and placed it into a plastic bag before putting that into Bokuto’s backpack with extreme carefulness. Hajime was getting confused.

“And how exactly is the Eagle King’s mask going to help?”  
“Do DNA tests sound familiar to you, or are you really that dumb?”

Hajime glared at a smiling Tooru, who handed his stolen gun back to him with a wink.

“And it didn’t occur to you that you should’ve told us about your little plan to try and take him out one on one?”  
“We can talk about that later, when no one’s trying to kill us. Deal?”  
“Deal. But you do owe us an explanation.”  
“Yeah, sure.”

The sound of bullets colliding against brick and wood had become more subdued. Their enemies were probably reloading their guns, which gave them a small window of opportunity they had to seize or else they’d lose the upper hand. So they all aimed their guns back over and on the sides of the wall, shooting the silhouette still standing behind the building and shooting from the open windows and the edges of walls that hadn’t completely crumbled.

It went on like that for a while, both sides shooting at each other and trying to gain territory inch by painful inch, pushing the other back. So far, they had kept it down a little, since they didn’t actually want the Shiratorizawa’s crew to fall back into the city before Kuroo and the others had them surrounded. They had to surrender their previous spot and regroup in the building behind them. Bokuto and Akaashi had got up to the second floor and were shooting from there, and Kageyama and Hinata were covering the back. A few others had joined them, including Kyoutani and Sugawara.

Suga had actually introduced himself to Tooru, since it was the first time they had met.

“Hi, I’m Sugawara Koushi, but you can call me Suga.”

Tooru had smiled, scanning the other man up and down before shaking his hand, the smile on his lips more honest this time.

“I’m-”  
“Oikawa Tooru, right? Iwaizumi’s best friend! I still can’t believe he never told us about you before. You seem like you’d be fun to hang out with.”  
“Thank you.”  
“Well, it was nice talking to you. Sorry it took so long for us to meet. I’m always stuck in the kitchen. Cleaning pots filled with oil and whatnot, you know, the usual.”  
“Yes, the… usual.”  
“We’ll talk later, when no one’s shooting at us. I gotta know how you made it across that damn blown up building without getting shot.”

And there went Sugawara Koushi, smiling like an angel with a machine gun in hand. Tooru stared after him, and Hajime recognized the look in his eyes. He had no idea what to do with the man that just introduced himself to him. Normally, the Seijoh’s captain was a fairly good judge of character. He could always read someone's intentions and see exactly what they didn't want him to see. But Sugawara wasn’t someone you could pin down easily, even for Oikawa Tooru, and that had to be getting on his nerves.

“Tooru, you can stare holes into our cook’s head later. We have to get moving now.”  
“Right.”

A bullet broke a window just above them, one of the last one not opened, and shards of glass went flying everywhere. Hajime stepped in front of Tooru to shield him with his back, his hands coming up to cup his face and pulling him against him. It had been more of a reflex than anything, and for a moment, they were frozen like that, glass raining down on them. Their foreheads were pressed together, and they stared into each other’s eyes.

“Well, I guess we’re really even now.”

Hajime smiled. He wiped away some dirt on Tooru’s cheek with his thumb.

“Yeah, sure.”

They pulled away and resumed their role, both going separate ways. Hajime was shooting from a window, careful to be low enough so as to not get shot and still be able to see over the edge. The Shiratorizawa’s crew were fighting back now and it seemed they had regained their footing enough so that without Kuroo’s counterattack, they’d both be on even ground.

They kept shooting at each other like that for a while longer. The Seijoh’s crew members that went to surround their enemies were finally attacking, revealing themselves. They probably had made their way far enough that the window left for the Shiratorizawa’s own crew to escape was small enough to be inconsequential. But even now, and with how much ammo both sides had already used, no one was gaining the upper hand. If it kept on going like this, it would come to who runs out of munition first.

Hajime didn’t know how many men they had lost by now. He didn’t know how many men their opponents had lost by now either. But there would be a time for mourning later. There would be a time for guilt later. For now, all that mattered is that they didn’t lose anymore men, that they didn't lose this fight. They had to win, they had to get to the enemy’s captain and bring him down. And, if it came to it, they had to make sure he wouldn’t make it out of here alive.

So the Seijoh’s captain fought and fought and fought, beside his family and friends, and with a goal in mind. He was so lost in the fight happening before his eyes that he tuned out everything else. He was so lost to his surroundings that he didn’t hear the scream and didn’t see the man standing on the railing over their heads, by the left wall.

He missed the gun aimed his way, missed the sound of footsteps coming up from behind him. He missed everything, everything but the sound of the trigger. And when he turned around, it was too late.

Tooru crashed into him. The bullet was flying too fast for the both of them. He was pushed against the wall from the force of the collision, his legs giving in under him. He dropped his guns somewhere in all the chaos. He heard screams and more bullets flying, this time toward the railing where a man was hiding.

Hajime saw their enemy get shot in the head, falling on the railing, dead before he could let out another breath. His gun had fell on the floor in front of them.

It took him a second to start moving again. The weight on his legs was still there. When he looked down on the person that had saved him for the second time that day, he expected Tooru to be getting up, looking back at him with wide chocolate eyes. But he wasn’t.

Tooru wasn’t getting up. He was still sprawled on Hajime’s lap, his head on the floor and left arm laying beside Hajime. His hair was hiding his face, and when he brushed it away with his finger, trying to see if he was just catching his breath, all that he could see was the blood on his lips. His chest was still rising and falling, but beyond that, he was as still as a statue.

“Tooru?”

He didn’t answer, didn’t move either. Hajime felt his hands start to shake, felt panic take over his head. And it took everything he had to take his eyes off of Tooru’s closed eyes and to his body. It took everything he had not to scream and cry when he finally did.

He just had time to see it, the wound on his shoulder, the bleeding wound of the bullet he had taken for him, before all hell broke loose.


	6. The Guess Monster

Hajime had wondered, for a long time, what portrayed Tooru’s promise to him. He wondered if, like his own, the tattoo had appeared above his heart, marking it has a promise made to the love of his life. He wondered if Tooru hated it, or if he wished he could take it back. If his best friend wished that all there was left between them disappeared like he did too, so he’d truly be done with him.

But he never wondered if Tooru’s tattoo was his only one. He knew the answer. He had heard the rumors that started some years after they parted ways, and had learned of Oikawa Tooru’s reputation, even galaxies away. So, even before he could truly see them for himself, he knew they were there.

He couldn’t find it in himself to be mad, and he had no right to be anyway. It wasn’t his choice to make, nor his place to be angry about having to share this with others. So, he really wasn’t mad because of some petty possessive reason or protective tendency. Tooru sure didn’t need him for that. No, he was mad because those promises, they use to mean something to the injured man. They used to mean so much he said he’d only ever make a promise to Hajime, his best friend in the whole world and the love of his life.

So when was it, that he changed his mind? When was it, that he gave that part of him, of his beliefs, away? When was it that he decided promises were something everyone deserved, that he became so sure he actually owed that to people? And why the hell did no one stop him?

“When I asked him about it, he said that it was to remember how it felt to keep his word.”

Yahaba had removed the bullet and had stitched up the wound in record time. He had been calm and collected throughout the whole ordeal. Hajime wished he could say the same about himself, but he’d be lying. He had not moved once since Suga and Kageyama had brought Tooru’s unconscious form in, delivering him to the care of their doctors. He had not moved and barely responded to anyone, just waiting and counting the seconds until he could open that damn glass door and step into the med bay. He had to. He had to be by Tooru’s side right now.

How did he not see the man? How did he miss it? How could he have not noticed the enemy had breached their ranks and fired a bullet at him? And how the hell could he let _him_ take that damn bullet in the shoulder? Had Tooru not suffered enough because of him as it is?

When Yahaba opened the door, Hajime was on his feet. The doctor gave him a look, as if he was hearing all of the questions ringing in his mind too. And he stepped aside. The Aobajohsai’s captain almost ran through the entrance, and to the bed farthest in the back. The curtains were drawn. Other beds were occupied, Yachi and Watari taking care of the few people that had been hurt during the ambush. No one had died, and barely ten men were hurt. That had been a relief, at least.

He had pushed the curtains aside and made his way closer to the bed. Tooru was there, alive, breathing and asleep. He was on his back, bandages around his shoulder. And tattoos on his skin.

“What does that mean?”

At some point, he had sat down in the chair on Tooru’s right. It had been out of instinct, almost, to sit by him, and guard his wounded side. Even if he wasn’t awake to notice it, Hajime could almost hear what he’d say.

_“Were you worried about me, Iwa-chan? You should know it takes more than a little bullet to get rid of me.”_

“He’s only made one promise he never wanted to keep. I thought you’d have it figured out by now.”  
“... yeah, thought so too.”

He knew why Tooru didn't want to find him, He knew the man had never wanted to have to fight him. He knew that. But it still hurt to know nonetheless, that he hadn't wanted to keep his promise. Hajime knew he deserved that much. He just wished Tooru knew he wanted him to find him. He always did.

“And you?”

Hajime looked back at Yahaba. He was checking Tooru’s vitals, still calm and composed, although his fingers were fidgeting with his pen, and he sent a sharp look at the captain. He had his doubts, at first, but now, he was certain of it: the doctor knew about what happened between them. Maybe Tooru had told him about it, maybe he figured the details beyond the obvious himself.

“Are you still going to keep your promise?”

Sighing was becoming something he did an awful lot of times these days. He couldn’t really explain what was going on with his train of thoughts right now, he didn’t understand a thing either. Actually, he might have been the one less qualified to understand what was going on in his mind.

But he’d need to try, at least, because Tooru was right. He was worlds away from keeping his promise, meanwhile he was keeping his. Hajime wanted it to be this way. He just needed to make sure his best friend knew that too. For the sake of two 8-year-old little boys who played pirate and hero all day and ran around on the beach until they’d end up sprawled on the sand, laughing and smiling more brightly than ever.

“No. Of course not.”  
“Then why did you promise that in the first place?”

Smiling, Hajime took Tooru’s hand, careful not to jostle his injured shoulder. He pressed a kiss to his palm before intertwining their fingers. The Seijoh’s captain shifted in his sleep, murmuring something about ‘dumb… Haji… so dumb…’

“I’ll only ever have him in my heart. And he needed to know that, even if it was through something as cliché as an old game we used to play. He was always the hero. And he always found me. But the game would end before I could try to take my revenge and defeat him. It hasn’t changed now. That’s what I promised him. He’ll always find me, and I’ll hold on to my words until the day I die.”

Yahaba hummed at that, and his glare softened around the edges. He still looked dead serious, though. Maybe that was his normal expression. Or maybe he was actually worried for his friend, expressing the only crack into his armor with mild annoyance passing off as anger.

“He’s lucky to have you, and Akaashi. He looks happy with you guys. Less worried, more himself again.”

The doctor smiled and sat down on the other chair by the left side of bed. He tucked the blankets under Tooru’s chin properly before leaning back in his chair. It was endearing to see, and reminded Hajime of all those times he saw Oikawa Ayumi, Tooru’s older sister, do the same for him when they were children and the boy had fallen sick. She had always been so caring of her little brother, taking over the responsibilities that belonged to their mother when she couldn’t do it herself. Both boys had always admired Ayumi, and still did. She had been the one to prove to them that they could do anything they set their mind to. And so they did.

For better or for worst.

“Something tells me he’ll be doing even better once you two sort everything out.”

The knowing look in Yahaba’s eyes spoke volume, and Hajime averted his eyes to his and Tooru’s joined hands so he could at least pretend he wasn’t seeing it.

Then, his gaze fell on his best friend’s face, and his worries came rushing back into his mind. Tooru was fine, he knew he was, but… but was he, really? Was he going to be okay after this? He’d surely need some physiotherapy for his shoulder, and maybe his mind wouldn’t leave unscathed either. And with everything going on right now, Hajime wouldn’t be able to help him get back on his feet. He wouldn’t be able to take care of Tooru, because they were still worlds apart, standing on different sides of a battle no one would ever win. And although Hajime would gladly ignore that fact if it meant he could help the love of his love get through this, he knew he couldn’t ask that of him.

So, guess he’d just have to fight for it. And he won’t stop until he’s proven Tooru wrong and made everything okay again. He wouldn’t stop until that ink, that scar of the sun against his heart, he wouldn’t stop until it disappeared. He wouldn’t stop, he’d never stop, because it meant he might be able to see Tooru’s bright, real smile directed at him again, some day.

☀️

His head was killing him, his right arm felt numb from the tip of his fingers up to his shoulder, and his myopia was reminding him of its existence, because he couldn’t tell exactly where the walls ended and the ceiling started. What a good start to an already really shitty morning - night, evening? Who knew? Certainly not him. At least his knee felt fine. Or as fine as it could get.

“Look who’s awake.”

Kuroo?

“Yep. How are you feeling on this fine afternoon?”

Well, at least now he knew what time of day it was. Before he could really process anything else, a hand was helping him sit up against the pillows of the bed he was laying in. He didn’t really know who it was, but he was grateful. His legs were stiff and his arms felt a bit the same. He’d have surely struggled quite a bit trying to sit up on his own.

“I’m fine, I think.”  
“Well, that’s reassuring. Is your shoulder hurting?”  
“No, just… numb.”  
“Well, that’s good. Means the medicine's working.”

Someone had a hand in front of his face, waving something under his nose. He squinted, unsure of what he was even trying to see, but soon he could make out the form of his glasses. He carefully took them and put them on. He stared at his lap for a bit, adjusting his sight and willing that awful feeling in his eyes to go away. When he finally looked up, Bokuto and Kuroo were staring at him with curious eyes.

“Um… do I have something on my face?”

Suddenly, they were laughing and snickering, leaning back in their chairs. Apparently, his glasses were funny. Well, sure, not a lot of people knew about the fact that he normally wore contacts, but he didn’t look that bad with his glasses on, right? Oh well, it didn't really matter.

Tooru took a second to analyse his surroundings. He was sitting on a bed right now, and two chairs were pulled up close to it, occupied by the two men. There were curtains on either side of him, drawn probably for privacy’s sake. The room looked like it must have been a med bay of some sorts. But, only problem is, he couldn’t remember ever being here before. It wasn’t the Seijoh’s medical wing, he was sure about that.

“Where are we?”

The two pirates’s hilarity had died down a little. Kuroo was once again wearing his usual smirk and Bokuto was still smiling. They looked calm. Relaxed. But it seemed almost forced. Like they wanted to put on a show in front of him to hide something from him. What could they be hiding? Did it have to do with the fact that he was apparently hurt and being nursed back to health in a medical facility he had never seen before?

He couldn’t remember how he got here. So he’d just have to pick up from where he could still remember and work his way up to now. Let’s see…

Hajime and him had been making a plan to bring down the Shiratorizawa. And Tooru had hacked into some files with Kenma’s help, and discovered that in the past two months, Semi Eita, the Eagle King’s second in command, had started having contact with one Tendou Satori. Many dinner dates and some contracts both men took together - romantic recon mission? - later, no more info, but not because the criminals had stopped seeing each other. No, Tendou didn’t see people that much on the regular if he didn’t like them. He had told as much to Oikawa and Ushijima once during a report for a mission, getting terribly off topic because the informer just felt like it. The look on Ushiwaka’s face was worth every second of having to listen to the long, annoying and very confusing rant about the thief’s love life.

The only explanation possible after all of that was that Tendou had taken a job on the Shiratorizawa, and was seeing his new boyfriend out of the public’s eyes now. Knowing that, it was easy for Tooru to put together a foolproof plan to get in contact with the pirate and offer him a deal. The usual ‘you give us the info we need and you’ll be free to go once this is all over’ deal, of course. However, he didn’t expect Tendou to bring Semi into it, demanding that his boyfriend also cut time on his sentence. He didn’t agree, at first, because Semi was one of the Shiratorizawa’s most dangerous criminal, and a former hitman. But after the redhead and him made a bargain, Tooru promising to let them both go and Tendou swearing to keep the other man in line and far from the life of a criminal, the Seijoh’s leader agreed.

A few weeks later, they were waiting for the enemy pirate’s ship to drop out of the sky and onto the flooded Emerekal. They had ambushed the whole crew and soon everyone was fighting, firing at everything that moved. Hajime was so focused on the fight in front of him that he didn’t see the enemy coming up from the side. Tooru had been so scared. The sniper had aimed for the head, and there was no way he’d survive that. So he had run. And the bullet had hit him in the shoulder. He had probably gone into shock after that, passing out in Hajime’s arms, because he couldn’t remember anything else.

“We’re in the Aobajohsai.”

His mind came to an abrupt stop, and then his eyes were on Kuroo again, staring at him.

“... what?”

Bokuto gave him an apologetic look. He continued instead of his friend. His joyous smile was gone, replaced by a nervous quirk of his lips that looked more like a grimace than a reassuring expression.

“After you… after you were shot, well, we kind of lost it. Iwaizumi was trying to get you to wake up, to make sure you were alive, and we were all running around ‘cause, you know, we were kinda panicking a lot. Suga and Kageyama decided that we should rush you back to the ships so you wouldn’t… bleed out and all. Iwaizumi wouldn’t leave you, so he and Suga were gonna bring you back. But by then the Shiratorizawa’s men had realized we were breaking ranks and decided that it’d be a great time to explode something else. The main crew snuck past us while we were trying to get back on our feet. Kuroo and the others guys were too far away to try and catch up with them at that point.”

The mission had failed. They had failed. _He_ had failed, and had gotten shot. How could he let this happen? How could he have been so careless? He should have been more prepared. And Hajime had almost been shot! How could he let all of that happen before his eyes and fail so miserably?

This couldn’t get any worse.

“So, to get back to the reason why you’re currently in the Aobajohsai, well, you see… how do I put this? Hum... the Eagle King kinda… stole… the Seijoh…”

Shit.

So this could get worse.

Wait. Yahaba had been in the Seijoh. He was waiting there with Watari to make sure everything was ready should someone need immediate medical care. The Shiratorizawa’s crew stole the Seijoh. So… so what happened to Yahaba? To everyone else? Did everyone make it?

“Is everyone else alright? And Yahaba, he was in our ship! Is he here, is he okay?”

If Tooru had been a bit more awake right now, he would’ve been instantly reassured by the small smiles and calming look the pirates gave him, but he wasn’t. So, he waited for the answer to his question, dreadful. And if he felt like he just couldn’t trust his eyes right now, myopia be damned, well, he could always blame it on the pain meds acting up on his brain and messing with his thought process. He just needed to hear it. He needed to hear that his friends, and Yahaba, someone he’d dare consider his little brother, were alright.

Kuroo understood. Tooru had never heard him sound so sure and confident before. The pirate knew what he was thinking about right now. He had probably been there too, many times, just like most of the people on this ship. They lived a life full of unexpected developments, and ambush and traps and dangerous missions. Wondering whether your loved ones and friends successfully made it out of yet another ordeal was a constant for them. But they never said it became easier with time. It never did. You couldn’t calm down those worries and fears inside your chest no matter how many times you had felt them rise up in your throat before. They became a part of you, never to disappear, but waiting, dormant, in the far back of your mind, until they were called to life once more. Until you had a reason to be afraid once more.

So Kuroo’s voice was a blessing to Tooru’s plagued mind. Because it was bearer of good news and sent his demons back to sleep. And for that, the Seijoh’s leader would forever be grateful to Hajime’s friends.

“Yeah, everyone’s fine. Yahaba made it out of the Seijoh when he saw them coming. And he even took Kiyoko with him. Kenma’s been working on integrating her severs to our own since we took off from Emerekal.”  
“Yeah, and I even got to talk to her! It was so cool! I asked if she wanted to be friends and she said yes! Can you believe that?”  
“No, I really can’t.”  
“Shut up, bro.”

Tooru let his head fall back against the pillows, suddenly exhausted. His worried had kept his head clear, or as clear as they could, but now, he was starting to calm down. Adrenaline was disappearing from his blood stream, and quite fast at that, leaving him with a sensation of heaviness in his limbs he knew meant he’d fall asleep any second now.

He couldn’t really manage to care if he did fall asleep again or not. He was just glad to know everyone was fine. All of his colleagues and all of those stupidly friendly pirates that were apparently tasked with keeping him company now, they were all alright. And Hajime was too. He had nothing to worry about.

Almost nothing.

Tooru’s eyes snapped open. He hadn’t even realized he had closed them to begin with.

“Hey, did Yahaba mention something about erasing the servers’ historic before leaving the ship?”  
“Uh, no, I don’t think so.”  
“Why do you ask?”  
“Because if they can still access it, they might catch up to who’s been keeping us informed of their whereabouts.”

It dawned on the two men keeping watch over him. They shared a look. And then they were getting up, as if ready to bolt at his next words.

“You mean that they’ll know their mole is Tendou?”  
“You said you erased all the information you got so far.”  
“I did, but if they start looking into how we knew they were going to be there, they might become suspicious. It’d be easy to compare our last few stops with Tendou’s and see the pattern. He’s been delivering most of his reports to our rendezvous point with a 3 hour time gap between then and when we’d come and collect it. They won’t be able to prove anything, but they could still act on it, out of caution.”  
“So we’re kinda toasted.”  
“More like we’re kinda burning and turning to coal.”  
“And what are the chances they don’t look into it, or do and don’t figure it out?”

No one had heard them come in and so when one of them talked, everyone’s head snapped towards them. Suga, Akaashi and Hajime were standing there, serious and wary expressions on their faces. Tooru couldn’t tell just how long they had been standing there, and how much they had heard, but it was apparent that it had been enough to warrant some concerns.

Tooru answered, even though he knew what he was about to say wouldn’t help calming them down in the slightest. He had no choice but to go with honesty on this one. So he’d go with honesty. Even if it was cold hard facts no one wanted to hear.

“Slim to none. They’re good at what they do. We either need to take Tendou out of there now or cut all contacts and hope he’ll make it out on his own.”  
“We can’t leave him there!”

Bokuto looked disgusted just at the thought of doing something like that. Kuroo had a hand on his shoulder in show of his silent support. It soon became clear that no one in the room wanted to settle on the second option, and Tooru least of all of them. Tendou might have been a pirate and he might have gone being his back sometimes when he had made some better deal with someone else, be it an enemy or a competitor, but Tooru would never leave him on his own like this. Yes, the man was a bit strange and he didn’t try to hide the fact that he was and would always be a criminal, but he was also somewhat nice to hang out with, be it for a mission report or to erase dangerous projects from the Council’s database.

“We can try and get in contact with him. He might not respond, seeing as his cover might not yet be blown, but if he does, we can arrange a meet up and make sure he gets to a safe place before the Shiratorizawa can try and prevent him from leaving.”  
“What if he’s already in trouble?”

The room fell into a heavy, solemn silence filled with thoughts no one dared to speak aloud, in fear that it might make it all true.

“He… he’ll make it. He always makes it.”  
“I’ll go ask Kenma to help with contacting him.”

Akaashi made his way over and settled back into his silence next to him. He hadn’t said anything yet, but his thoughts were clear as day in his eyes, loud in Tooru’s ears. He knew what his friend wanted to say even before he did. The black haired man put a hand on his shoulder, his uninjured one, and gave a comforting squeeze, as if promising that everything would be okay.

“I’m glad you’re okay.”

Tooru couldn’t help but smile back at him, even as his friend made his way out of the room to make true on his words and start searching for their favorite hacker. Suga had apparently decided to help, and with one last sympathetic smile sent Tooru’s way, followed the former spy out of the room. He looked over his shoulder when he got to the door and said to his friends:

“Come on, you idiots, come and help us. Kuroo, you know Kenma. Where do you think we should start with?”

And just like that, Tooru was left alone with Hajime. They stared at each other for a few seconds in complete silence, both lost in their heads. Then, the pirate cleared his throat. looking to the side with a nervous expression, before walking over to him. He sat down on the chair to his right, finally staring back at him.

Tooru smirked up at him, mischievous all of a sudden. He should really have been expecting it, to be honest. But he was probably too worried about everything to see it coming. Which is exactly why he needed to do that.

“Don’t thank me.”

The shock he could see on Hajime’s face was almost too funny for him to keep his composure. His best friend opened his mouth, as if to say something to him. He furrowed his brows, looked back down at his lap, mouth still open as if he was a fish. But he still hadn’t say anything.

When he finally did, he was smiling a bit too. And Tooru wished it hadn’t woken up the butterflies in his stomach like that.

“Yeah, I guess I owe you one now, again.”

It was Tooru who looked to the side this time, averting his eyes from Hajime’s soft gaze. He had to stifle a smile. It was more hard to do than he would’ve hoped, unfortunately.

“Don’t sound so happy about it.”  
“Sorry.”

Hajime didn’t sound sorry at all.

Tooru sighed, letting his head fall back into the pillows behind him again. This time, he had nothing to worry about. Nothing major. Or life threatening for anyone. Just… his resolve to be angry at Hajime for the rest of his life melting to a puddle and his chest filling with a strange warmth at the thought that maybe he didn’t mind so much. He tried to pass it off as just exhaustion. He was really tired, that’s why he couldn’t hold back a happy smile anymore. Yeah, that had to be it.

“I’m sorry about the Seijoh. And about… you getting shot because of me.”

Hajime brought his hand up to Tooru’s, laying on the bed beside him. He didn’t take it. He just outstretched a finger, his index, and nudged his thumb softly. As if only that little touch was everything he could do, everything he allowed himself to do. Tooru looked at him, meeting his eyes again for the hundredth time today. It had almost become a dance, in which they’d gaze at each other and look away as soon as they were caught. As much as Tooru might have been letting his anger and resentment die down this time, he wished Hajime would get this afternoon would not be everlasting. They didn’t have all the time in the world to play an intricate game of so many different plays a lifetime would not suffice to finish it.

He wished Hajime would let his guilt go, if only for now, because it meant he’d take his hand and smile at him again and Tooru knew that’s all he wanted right now. That’s all it would take for him to forgive him right now, if only for an afternoon.

But his best friend would never push him, would never cross the line seven years apart had drawn between them. He’d never want to hurt him, they both knew that. So, even though he promised he’s make Tooru change his mind about him, he’d still be careful with his every move and every word. He knew he had to be, for both of their sake.

“Don’t worry about it. It’ll take more than a little bullet for you to get rid of me, Iwa-chan.”

Hajime’s eyes shone at that, in that way they always did whenever he thought something was funny. No laugh escaped his lips, but his gaze was enough for Tooru to tell he was amused. At what exactly, he could only wonder.

“Yeah, I know.”

They fell into a comfortable silence after that, and if at some point they found themselves with joined hands and red cheeks, they didn’t mention it. Hajime ran his thumb over Tooru’s palm, comforting him in the pain he couldn’t feel, but it was the thought that mattered. That’s all he could ask for right now.

Suddenly, a thought popped into his head and didn’t want to leave its new home, only nagging at him more and more as he tried to push it back down into his memory. But it was a losing battle, because he was apparently not as persistent as his subconscious.

“Can you show me your tattoos?”

Hajime’s head snapped up at that, looking back at him with wide eyes full of shock yet again. His brows furrowed not a second later, confusion writing itself as clear as day across his face. Tooru put on a face of impatience and mild excitement, if only to back up his own traitorous words.

“Why?”

It was Tooru’s turn to furrow his eyebrows and stare at Hajime. He frowned when his best friend put on an air of relentless resolve. Who would give up first? It had to be Hajime. Tooru would not allow himself to be defeated like this. No, not like this, by this stupid man who left him in the dust. Or, rather knee deep into icy waters. He had just asked a question and was answered by another, clearly a mark of rudeness he would not let pass.

Oh, damn it all to hell.

“You’ve seen mine, I want to see yours.”

He had even pointed at his chest, where the tattoo of a star well known to the two of them was swirling on his skin. Hajime’s eyes followed the pointed finger and he stared at it for a second before looking away. He was blushing, and Tooru would’ve made fun of him if his own cheeks hadn’t been burning a bright red too, much more noticeable than the one dusting Hajime’s face.

“And you do owe me, you said so yourself. I’ll take that as payment.”

He smirked when green eyes glared at him. There was no real heat behind his gaze, his faked anger was just for show, but he could tell Hajime regretted indulging him now. The fact that he could have stood up and marched through the doors without a look back over his shoulder and yet he stayed right where he was made this all the more real in Tooru’s eyes. He’d be blind if he still didn’t see that Hajime was trying his hardest to patch things up between the two of them. That meant for now, he could ask away anything he wanted and would probably be answered with the one and only truth. It was nice, knowing he had that kind of power, when it seemed just about everything around him was slipping out of his grasp.

He wondered if Hajime was doing all of this, humoring him like this, because he came to that same conclusion. He only hoped that even if that was the case, his best friend still enjoyed spending such time in his company, and wasn’t doing it only out of some sense of duty.

Maybe that would be his next question.

“Fine.”

Hajime didn’t lose time in pulling his shirt over his head and folding it on his lap, before straightening up again, meeting his eyes. Then, Tooru broke the staring match. He could lose that battle. His eyes fell on the first tattoo he saw, right over the pirate’s heart. His breath got caught in his throat, and his hand took a hold of Hajime’s again. He couldn’t really help it. He didn’t even know what to say anymore.

The tattoo represented the Milky Way as seen from Earth, their home planet. It was beautiful, in all the colors of the night sky and more. The tattoo wasn’t big, a small portion of sky fading to tanned skin on the edges, but the stars were bright, as if they were shining across his heart. Tooru knew it wasn’t possible, of course, but still. When he met Hajime’s eyes again, the other man was smiling at him.

“I did tell you you were my world, didn’t I?”

He had, so many years ago. When they first kissed, on the beach that was all they had ever known then. Tooru had confessed, that day. The sun had been setting on the horizon, making the sea reflect its fading light and reds, oranges and yellows curled around the star. It had been easier than he thought, to say those words he meant from the bottom of his heart. Maybe it was because he hadn’t really planned to say anything to his best friend, maybe it was because it had become a part of his own world, his own universe of stars and waves and green eyes that had looked back at him with as much love as his own held.

And Hajime had smiled, happy. He had said those same words too before leaning in to kiss him softly on the lips. It hadn’t been full of fireworks and sparks, like in the movies or in the books. Tooru hadn’t found it in himself to care. Because it just made sense. His emotions and his feelings, they were making sense in his head. And his entire universe felt so safe and so bright. He had returned his smiled when Hajime had pulled back, pressing his forehead to his, and as his best friend whispered those words he knew were true, he felt like he was coming home for the first time in so long.

So yes, he remembered when Hajime told him those exact same words. He remembered.

Tooru looked down again, incapable of meeting his eyes right now. He wouldn’t be able to hold on if he did. So he searched for the second tattoo, instead. He willed his emotions to quiet down in the maze of his mind and forced the tears he would never let himself cry right now back down.

He couldn’t see it, the second tattoo. It wasn’t on his arms or his shoulders, and not on his chest either. Hajime soon caught on to his confusion and sighed, before standing up. Tooru was mortified to find that he dreaded the thought of Hajime leaving him now. Because although he wished it wasn’t true, although he would still rather believe the lie than face the truth, a small part of his wind whispered to him that he was safe, with Hajime. He had always been and always would be. No promises could ever change that, he knew his best friend too well for that.

But Hajime wasn’t leaving him behind in this unknown room. He just turned around. Tooru saw why soon enough, and he hadn’t even realized his hand was no longer holding his best friend’s when he outstretched it to trace the line of ink on his shoulder blade.

This one was simple. Tooru had a couple like those too. And contrary to popular beliefs, it wasn’t a sign of the bearer’s fate in accomplishing his promised feat. Sometimes the promise of a lifetime was represented by a small dot on the inside of your wrist. Other times, people could find themselves with a complicated pattern taking over the whole expanse of their back after only having promised to repay a small dept.

No, the pattern of a tattoo wasn’t representative of how much your promise meant to you, or even of how much it would cost you. Sometimes, a tattoo’s intricacy only meant that its ink and colors represented a promise made to someone who was better portrayed by such a shape and form, by such a meaning. Other times, it was a given to a relationship, simple and loving, and so the tattoo represented as much.

The simple pattern of black ink with the faintest hue of dark blue made up the shape of a circle and of the half of another, bigger, curling around the smallest’s half on the left side. Tooru ran his fingers over the ink, feather like touches of his hand because he knew a tattoo could still hurt weeks after its appearance.

Hajime didn’t seem to mind the touch. And Tooru decided to spare him the embarrassment of mentioning the red that colored the tip of his ears.

“What do you think it means?”  
“That one?”  
“Yeah.”  
“I… I hoped you’d tell me what you think.”

Tooru was the one to take Hajime’s hand in his this time, when he turned back around and put his shirt back on. He thought about the answer he was about to give, he thought about just how cheesy it would sound. Normally, he’d keep his reflections on Hajime and his relationship to himself. But the pirate had done as he asked, and he supposed he could too. Fair exchange and all, right?

Here goes nothing.

“The first circle is our first try. From childhood to when you left, we’d always been together. That was our first chance. And the second circle, the one missing a half, it’s… now. It’s not finished yet. Because… you promised I would find my best friend again, and neither of us know how it’ll end yet. That’s why it’s not complete. It’s… not over yet.”

He couldn’t bring himself to look at Hajime right now. He couldn’t help the frown that took over his face. But he certainly didn’t expect his hand that Hajime was still holding close to be brought up to the man’s lips. His head snapped to the side, his eyes searching for green eyes so different than his own, and he just blushed even more when he realized that he was not hallucinating. The pirate he used to call his boyfriend was pressing a kiss to the back of his hand.

“You make so much sense it’s frustrating.”

Hajime was looking back at him now, smiling at him. He huffed when he found no suitable answer to give the man, and kept his mouth shut. He really had no idea of what to even say anymore.

“Tooru.”

He didn’t answer right away, instead taking a few seconds to try and regain some semblance of control over his voice.

“Yeah?”

Hajime’s gaze was bittersweet when he spoke again, and he squeezed Tooru’s hand in his own as if the act could grant him a confidence he had been lacking of in that very moment. It worked, it seemed, because he faltered only once.

“Tooru, I know nothing I can say will make this better, but… but I really want you to know that I never wanted to leave you.”

The change in subjects, or rather the fact that their conversation led them here, came as a surprise to him. It shouldn’t have, he knew that, but it still did. Because Hajime was talking about something that was left unsaid so far. He thought he still had time before he had to face the role he had to take in that particular conversation. He didn’t, clearly.

He hadn’t managed to turn his words the way he wanted them to, just like always when it concerned Hajime. When he wanted to sound angry, it came out frustrated, and when he wanted to sound nostalgic, it sounded unsure.

“You still did.”

But right now, he knew he just sounded broken. He didn’t want to, of course. But he still did.

“You know I had to.”

And he did, to a certain extent. He’d known, that it would happen. Hajime hadn’t try to hide that part of his family legacy. Tooru had been there when Iwaizumi Hiraya had first told the tales of the old captain of the Aobajohsai to her son and his best friend. The two boys had grown up with those stories of pirates and heroes, and been inspired by those very stories to create their own when they played on the beach together. Hajime had always wanted to be the pirate captain of the most dangerous and powerful ship and Tooru had always been his sworn enemy and the hero to right his crimes. Back then, they had laughed at the thought. They weren’t anymore.

Not since Hajime’s mother had admitted to being one of the descendant of the first pirate captain that had led the Aobajohsai. Not since she had told him that she had been a pirate herself, before marrying Hajime’s father and settling down so her son could have a normal and safe childhood. Not since it had then fallen on Hajime to take her place once he was old enough.

Tooru had known all of that. But what his boyfriend had kept him in the dark of was that he was planning on leaving, and soon. Without a warning. Without a goodbye.

“No, I don’t. Because you didn’t tell me. God, Hajime, you never even told me about what you were planning. I had to learn from your mother that you were leaving, and if I hadn’t made it to the beach, you would’ve just left me without even a goodbye, admit it.”

He was not going to cry. He was not going to cry, no, no, no. He had thought about when he’d confront Hajime a hundred times before, had spent days and night thinking about the exact words he’d say to him. But all of it didn’t matter now, because here he was, facing his best friend, facing the man he loved, and he had no idea of what he was doing. Had no idea of how to react to that heartbroken look in Hajime’s eyes, or the remorse in his voice.

“You’re right. Of course you’re right.”  
“Then can you please explain to me why you thought you had to keep this from me?”  
“I didn’t want you to have to choose.”  
“What?”

Green eyes stared into his own and he wondered, for the first time in seven years, if he had made the right choice. Made the right decision. If he had been on the right side of all of this or not. And he hated all of this even more because of that.

“Would you have let me go if I’d asked?”  
“If you had wanted me to.”  
“And would you have come with me?”  
“I… I don’t know.”

Hajime intertwined their fingers, and Tooru wanted to scream. Or cry, or laugh, or run away. He wanted to forget, to think about something else, anything else. Because this moment was something he had never let himself dream about, and he would be damned if he allowed his traitorous heart to want this to never end now. He didn’t want to face the truth. He was okay with his lie, okay with the unknown, it just meant he still had time until his missing heart was breaking again.

“That’s what I was running away from. I didn’t want to make you choose between me and your dreams. You wanted to follow in your sister’s footsteps. I wanted to follow in my mother’s. I just didn’t want you to have any regrets.”  
“You had no right to choose for me. You should have told me.”  
“I know. But like I said. I didn’t want you to live with regrets. I can live with mine if it means you don’t have to.”

A dry laugh escaped his lips, and he was closing his eyes and shaking his head. He didn’t want to see anything right now. He just wanted to let everything go. He just wanted to hold on to something so he wouldn’t be completely lost here on his own, in a pirate ship he had come to understand would be Hajime’s future instead of him.

But it didn’t always have to be like that. It didn’t, when they were 7 years old. It didn’t when they were 8. Back then, the game stopped before they truly had to choose between a perfect role and each other.

“You’re so stupid. I’d never regret choosing you, Hajime.”

☀️

Tendou Satori was known for being one of the most enigmatic and strange person in the whole universe. It was a fact. The guy was unpredictable and never made a move too soon in his entire criminal career. He was nicknamed the Guess Monster. The reason behind the moniker was well known and commendable if you ever aspired to be working in the same line of business he did. After all, in almost 15 years, he had never stepped foot in prison, which was something if you took in consideration the number of time he was actually caught doing a crime.

If you ever asked the man yourself, he’d tell you that he was just being lucky. But everyone knew he was simply guessing. Every time, every _single_ time, Tendou would get caught red-handed, but he’d always somehow get out of his sentence. Out of jail time. He’d walk away from the Council’s grasp a free man, and proceed to repeat the whole thing again and again, and again.

He could always guess which side of the whole fight he should be on, and no matter where he started at, he always ended up with the winners. The survivors. And that’s how he walked free every time. He’d guess. And then he’d cut deals after deals, information for his freedom. Some people still wondered how he managed to get hired by anyone with such a bad reputation to his name. Point was, in the end, people still thought that if he chose to take part in some stunt they were pulling, it meant it would go well. They were just idiots. Tendou’s sense of loyalty shifted as much as the wind. His allegiance went as far as it would go. He always changed his mind at some point.

Semi knew all of that. He knew that. And his colleagues had warned him, too. They would be laughing right now, if this had been under different circumstances. If their captain and themselves hadn’t just escaped an ambush that could’ve cost them their lives. He was sure they’d be serving him half a dozen ‘told you so’ once they could say this was over and buried in the past.

But it wasn’t right now. It wasn’t, and his boyfriend, his stupid and funny and strange but so lovable boyfriend was either going to escape or get killed. And he was supposed to be helping his anger driven friends murder the traitor of the Shiratorizawa. He was supposed to. And he was angry too. He was furious. And he was hurt, and he felt betrayed more than ever. He just wished he was stronger than those stupid feelings in his heart. But he wasn’t, he had never been. Satori wasn’t supposed to betray him. Not him. They were together.

The gun in his hand wouldn’t stop shaking, just like his fingers wouldn’t either. He was shaking and he was trying not to cry. He wanted so desperately to pull the trigger. He wanted so desperately to run into Tendou’s arms and never let go. He… he had no idea what to do anymore. And it was all that stupidly tall and pretty redhead’s fault!

Satori was looking at him, a small smile on his lips. He looked calm. And it pissed Semi off. He could at least pretend to be nervous! It was as if he knew he wouldn’t shoot.

Semi sighed, dropped the gun and, his eyes never leaving his boyfriend, he stepped aside. Tendou still had his hands raised, but eventually lowered them. He never reached for his own gun in the holster at his belt and he didn’t move for a second more. The sniper wished he would hurry up. When he finally did move, he walked past him, his eyes staring straight ahead.

And Semi couldn’t help but hope he wasn’t the only one stifling tears, wasn’t the only one hurting.

Tendou’s hand brushed his, and he was smiling at him, that true and soft smile he’s only seen on his lips a few times in the months they’d been dating. He had kept it for him, that smile. Kept it for when it’d just be the two of them, and they could share the weight of their lives together without being scared.

Semi turned away, incapable of holding his gaze for longer than that. He clenched his hands into fists and did his best to ignored the urge to look back over his shoulder, even as he heard Tendou’s footsteps fading the more distance he put between them.

When he was sure he was alone in the hallway of the ship they stole, he fell on his knees, and he couldn’t stop his tears anymore, letting them fall as he lowered his head to the floor. He slammed his fist down on the metal tiles, and he willed his thoughts to leave him alone for a little while, even though he knew nothing he could do would help with that.

Because Tendou had left him behind, breaking what they had. He was flying away in a stolen pod, escaping yet another death. And he was probably on his way to report the whole freaking situation to that damned task force that apparently forged an alliance with the Aobajohsai.

What Semi didn’t know yet was that Tendou looked back. When he reached the end of the hallway and was about to go through the doors leading to the hangar of the ship, he looked back at him. And he smiled again, this time heartbroken.

”Farewell, my paradise.”


	7. The Suga Intervention

“Hey, remember that time Lev blew the labs up during that really boring chemistry class?”  
“He almost got himself expelled because of it. Yaku was so mad at him.”  
“Yeah, that was pretty funny to see.”  
“What do you want, Kuroo?”

Kenma raised an eyebrow when his friend feigned surprise at the question. Really, what an idiot. Still, the blond man knew that if he hadn’t known Kuroo so well, he would probably had been fooled too. Too bad the dumbass could not get anything past him anymore, even after years spent apart. You can’t forget tells that you knew by heart for the better part of ten years. They both knew that. It was almost insulting that Kuroo would still try to lie to him.

“Can’t I just want to catch up with an old friend I lost touch with after graduation?”  
“If we’re calling getting involved with criminals and piracy ‘losing touch’, sure. What do you want?”

The smile on the other man’s lips was probably almost as irritating as the chuckle that left his lips. Kenma really hated that laugh with every inch of his being. Granted, it wasn’t much, but he made up for it in sheer exasperation. His idiot of a childhood best friend had no right to start laughing now, after so long without even a single message to say he was doing fine, and reminding him of treasured memories as if this was just a normal day and not the aftermath of a crushing defeat against their common enemy. God, what a freaking idiot!

“Well, if you’re gonna be like that...”  
“Kuroo. Spit it out.”  
“Wanna go on a date with me?”

A press of the wrong button, one second too soon, and his avatar was dying. **Game Over** , the screen in front of Kenma’s eyes read. But even knowing that he lost all his unsaved achievements and would need to restart the whole sequence wasn’t enough to shake him out of his surprise. That was probably the most emotions he had shown to anyone so freely in a while, except for Hinata and Akaashi, but he couldn’t care right now.

“What?”

The dumbass sighed, almost defeated, running a hand through his messy black bangs that hadn’t changed one bit since the Academy. He looked down at his feet, then at Kenma’s, and after a few seconds of complete silence from both of them, the only sound the background music of his console, his former best friend was risking a look toward him, sheepish and as awkwardly bold as ever before. The hacker never thought he’d get that very look directed at him in his life. He never thought he’d see anything but friendship in Kuroo’s eyes. Seeing a hint of something more was maybe the most unreal thing that had happened to him in years.

What a dumbass.

“Wanna go on a date with me?”

Turning back to his game, he pressed restart. Eyes glued to the screen once more, he said:

“Okay.”

Kuroo actually smiled at that, the crooked and too bright and honest smile he’d only ever have on his lips after a good score on the shooting exercises or after he would defeat their classmates in battle simulations. It was the kind of smile that Kenma secretly adored, but never in a million years would he have let himself hope it would be sent his way. Never before, that is. Now, maybe he could.

“Great! I’ll pick you up at six tonight.”  
“We’re in the same ship. My room is literally right next to yours.”  
“Make sure to dress fancy.”  
“I only have these clothes.”  
“Just play along, Kenma.”  
“Fine. I’ll dress my best, don’t be late or I’m dumping you.”

The blond had rolled his eyes, once more exasperated, but this time, he hoped the fondness he felt for the man was easy to pick up on. If Kuroo’s smile was anything to go by, he did notice it. The screen flashed red again, his character thoroughly beat up by the virtual enemy, but Kenma really didn’t care. He’d just have to restart, and he hadn’t gotten really far in the level anyway this time. His gaze just wouldn’t leave his friend’s retreating back, even when Kuroo had disappeared behind the doors of the dining room.

“Kiyoko?”  
_“Yes?”_  
“Where’s Akaashi right now?”  
_“I believe he’s with Bokuto Kentarou, my new friend. They are currently in the machines’ room. Should I notify Akaashi that you wish to talk to him?”_  
“No, thank you.”  
_“Very well.”_

Walking towards the doors Kuroo had gone through a few minutes ago, Kenma wondered how he should bring up the news that he was going on a date with a pirate to his friend. Akaashi would probably be happy for him. He could then proceed to ask the black haired man what he was doing in the machines’ room with one Bokuto Koutarou.

☀️

“So, how’s the husband doing? Heard you got in a fight.”

Hajime grunted, sending a quick succession of punches at the punching bag in front of him before sending a kick. Taking a step back, he spared one look at Sugawara before carrying on with his stress relieving activity. His entire body was screaming at him to stop with his nonsense, but his mind wouldn’t leave him alone, and so he punched and he kicked again.

“Tooru’s fine. He’s sleeping right now. It wasn’t a fight, it was… an overdue explanation. And he’s not my husband.”

He heard a scoff coming from his right, and footsteps coming up from behind him. He turned around and was met with a bow staff sent flying toward his face. He caught it out of instinct. Suga was already in a battle stance, watching him with calculating eyes and a smile worthy of the Cheshire cat on his lips. He crooked a finger, motioning for Hajime to attack first.

“Of course he isn’t.”

The pirate glared at his friend, taking a step forward and swinging the weapon at the other’s head. Suga dodged skillfully, taking a step forward himself before crouching down and trying to swipe Hajime’s feet from under him.

“What does that mean?”  
“Exactly what it sounds like.”

Suga’s smile was so sharp it could have cut through steel. He kept moving on Hajime, barely leaving him enough time to recover from one attack before he had to take on another. That’s when the captain understood just what he had got trapped into. This was a Suga Intervention. The same given to Matsukawa and Hanamaki before they started dating, the same one that actually got them to confess to each other, sparing the whole crew their oblivious pinning and very not subtle flirting that had been going on for months.

“Suga, you know this is different...”  
“Is it? How so?”  
“After this is over, he’ll go back to trying to put me in jail. And there’s really nothing I can do that could change that.”

His friend looked at him as if he had just heard the most ridiculous thing ever, and was debating whether or not to punch him for it. Hajime raised the bow staff in front of his face, just to be sure not to make it too easy for the cook. People tended to assume Sugawara would never hurt a fly. While they were right that he was in no way a violent or particularly short tempered person, they would also be wrong. That man was one of the scariest person Hajime had ever met. And he should not be underestimated. Especially if he had a goal in mind.

“Iwaizumi Hajime, please tell me you’re kidding.”  
“Well, I would, but I’d be lying.”

Sighing way too loudly to be anything but dramatic, the silver haired man aimed a series of punches at him, before trying again to swipe his legs. But before he could realize it, Hajime stepped right into his trap, again. The cook got back on his feet before he could regain his stance and jumped forward, landing a kick on his opponent’s chest. Hajime’s breath left him and he was stumbling back, falling on his ass. He didn’t even have the time to try and get up before Suga had his staff pointed at his head, a clear sign of who the winner was.

“Really, captain, I’m disappointed. If I didn’t know better, I’d call you a coward.”

The only thing that prevented Hajime from snapping at his friend for his jab was the training weapon currently being held centimeters away from his nose. But he did glare up at Suga, clearly offended. His frustration didn’t seem to phase the man one bit. If anything, it turned out to be his own undoing. Suga glared back with just as much intensity.

“This man got hurt once for you. You couldn’t do anything back then. But now, you can. And you’re telling me you’re just going to give up on your first chance at happiness in years?”  
“I-”  
“Keep your excuses for yourself. Or better yet, listen closely.”

Suga offered him a hand, and although begrudgingly, he took it. His friend pulled him to his feet, clasping his hand in his for a second before stepping back and assuming a fighting stance again. Hajime copied him, and in seconds they were back at it again.

The cook looked downright scary like this, swinging his bow staff effortlessly and dodging every kick and punch graciously. Pair that up with the concentrated look on his face and he was becoming more and more menacing and worrying as the minutes bleed on.

“You love him, and he loves you. That should be enough for you to get your ass moving.”  
“Suga, we are enemi-”  
“Shut up, I’m not done.”

Hajime had to dodge a particularly strong attack, the bow staff barely missing his nose before colliding with the wall with great force. From there on out, he decided to shut up and listen. Plus, Suga’s glare was scary, scary enough to warrant some levels of concern. Better to just obey him and wish for his mercy should he make another wrong move.

“I know you think you can’t make this right, that you’ve gone too far to fix things up. I know you think, in some deep, deep corner of your stupid head, that Oikawa would be better off with someone else.”

The captain tried to stop the thoughts from flooding his mind, he tried to push back the awful feeling that rose in his chest when he remembered that night on the beach. He tried to forget, to swallow down his raging heart that just wanted to jump out of his throat. He found out he couldn’t. And the image of Tooru crying and screaming at him came rushing into his mind, rendering him paralyzed.

Suga broke him out of his thoughts with a light tap of his staff on his shoulder. He spared him one look before picking up the pace of his attacks again, and Hajime couldn’t really think about anything else but dodging and swinging his own weapon to block yet another jab at his face.

“Like I was saying, you, captain, think you don’t deserve your happily ever. That’s stupid, of course.”  
“Of course.”

His friend did not like the bitterness in his voice.

“Did anyone ever tell you you’re a stubborn jackass?”  
“I believe you’re the first.”  
“Well, you really are.”  
“Suga, please, just get on with it. Although I would love to spend the day listening to you insult me, we don’t have that much time. We still need to come up with our next step.”  
“Fine, fine.”

They stopped for a minute, sitting down to drink from the water bottles Suga had brought with him. Hajime had been so caught up in his head that he hadn’t even noticed just how exhausted he was. He’d need to put an end to this soon, or else he might just drop dead right at his friend’s feet.

They had been picking up their staffs when Suga started talking again.

“What I’m getting at, is that you shouldn’t be thinking about this like there’s no way out, or else you’ve already lost. And something tells me you care too much about him to really give up that easily.”  
“...”  
“So, instead of waiting around for nothing, you should try and fix things up. Talk to him. Tell him jokes, make him laugh, smile and get him to tell you about what he’s been doing on his own for five years. He’ll know you’re interested in catching up and he’ll brag about everything he accomplished just to impress you. And you’ll be proud of him. Just… just listen to him, and you’ll make him happy and comfortable around you like he was before.”

That… wasn’t a bad idea. Maybe he should give it a try. He had meant to ask Tooru about how his life was doing, he just got a bit too caught up planning to take down Shiratorizawa, and after that, he was shot, and Hajime was still trying to find their next step...

That’s when Suga decided to finish him off. One swipe at his feet with the staff and he was falling hard on his ass, his head spinning. His whole body hurt, even his toes screamed at him to stay down. He couldn’t remember when was the last time he was so tired. His friend, still standing tall in front of him, stared down at him with his disapproving mother hen look.

“It would be a better use of your time and our training equipment will finally catch a rest.”  
“... yeah, you’re probably right… mind helping me clean up?”  
“Not at all, cap.”

They made short work of putting away the bow staffs and getting the sparring area cleaned up, and with a last Cheshire smile and a wave, Suga was on his way to the kitchen and Hajime was heading for his room. He really needed a shower. And a cup of coffee, because his eyes couldn’t stay open long enough for him to notice he was walking into a wall. When he finally stepped into his bedroom, he took a shower, changed and decided to head to the dining room for his coffee. One look from Bokuto and the man was sliding his steaming cup toward him.

“Gonna go get your man?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Good luck, cap. You’ll need it.”  
“Thanks, Bo.”  
“Anytime.”

A knowing smile from his friend and the slowest walk he’s ever taken later, the supposedly fearless captain of the Aobajohsai ship was standing in front of the doors leading to the med bay. He wished he could say he wasn’t nervous. He couldn’t. But he got this far, it would be stupid to turn back around now. Iwaizumi Hajime was many things, but one thing he was _not_ was a coward.

So he opened the door and stepped into the room.

☀️

“Iwaizumi Hajime, captain of the Aobajohsai.”

The pirate narrowed his eyes and turned around to face the source of the voice. The man that stared back at him was towering over him even a few feet away from him. He looked strangely out of place here, in this shady bar the crew had insisted they visited. But there was something eerily familiar, but Hajime couldn’t pin down from where he might know this man. Olive green eyes stared into his own before he gazed at the men standing behind him. He didn’t know them. Strange.

“Who’s asking.”  
“I am Ushijima Wakatoshi.”

Instantly, the newcomers were met with guns aimed at their faces. One of them sneered at Bokuto, almost challenging him to shoot. His leader raised a hand and he settled down. But most of them had a hand on their holster too, now. This was bad. They were attracting attention. Damn it. Tonight was supposed to be fun. They weren’t even wearing their image inducers!

The Shiratorizawa’s task force wasn’t supposed to be anywhere near this sector tonight, or ever really. They had no business here.

Ushijima was talking again. He didn’t seem phased one bit by the threat they posed, and Hajime would have been offended had Tooru not told him that it would take a supernova to get that man to react to anything.

“Would you mind if we talked?”  
“About what?”  
“You have information we require.”

Hajime raised his right hand, and his crew were putting their weapons down. He spared a glance toward Kuroo, whose smile was a bit too crooked, giving away his building nerves. Even Suga looked uncertain about this. He could just hope they didn’t have any reasons to be. He didn’t feel like having a fight tonight.

When he stared back at the government agents, it was with a steely glare he usually reserved for difficult informers.

“Let’s take this outside.”

A few minutes later, they were standing in an old run down building where no one would bother them. Hajime had his hand on his gun too now. This was too strange to leave anything to luck. Something was off, those men didn’t look on bit like they were here just for intel on the criminals they were tracking down. And there was something to this Ushijima guy... Hajime couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was wrong.

“So let’s hear it. What do you want to know?”

The same man that had sneered earlier was the one to speak next, eyes barely containing his fury. He spat his words like they were venom on his tongue. Bokuto did well to keep a careful eye on him.

“Seems unlikely for pirates like you to be this cooperative.”  
“Maybe we just want to avoid a fight. After all, you’re not after us.”

Another man, standing right next to mister sneer, fixed them with a look Hajime couldn’t decipher. And now the alarm bells were blaring in his head. He stared the small man down yet he just stared back, unwavering in his scheming. Still completely unknown, yet the captain could almost recognize that look...

“We know you’ve been in contact with Oikawa Tooru. And we’ve been made aware that you had a fight against the Shiratorizawa, although you came out defeated. Now, we wish to know about the information you’ve gathered on them. Tell us, and we will leave you to your evening, unarmed.”  
“Is that a threat I hear?”

Kuroo had his gun in hand again, although this time, he didn’t try to hide his own glare. He was done playing, they all were. The task force knew too much. Tooru had told him he was careful to keep his whereabouts a secret from the Council and from his colleagues, and that no one would know about their meetups. Especially not his rival of all people. And those guys said they had been made aware of a fight that had happened in the middle of nowhere. Maybe they had a mole inside the Shiratorizawa too. That was unlikely, although for now that was the only explanation.

But if they had a mole inside, they wouldn't have to ask them about information they could already get easily. No, this didn’t make sense. It made no sense at all.

“We just wish for information. Then, we’ll leave you alone.”

Ushijima’s voice left no room for negotiation. Hajime glared at him again. This man unnerved him, and not just because he knew Tooru didn’t like him.

“We don’t know where they are. They disappeared after our fight. That’s all we know, now shoo. We don’t have anything else to tell you.”

Hanamaki had crossed his arms and was smirking slyly, which Hajime doubted was the right attitude to have right now. God, that wasn’t how the evening was supposed to go. Hajime was supposed to be getting slightly drunk right about now, and start gushing about how he missed Tooru and how he wished he was here with him right now, laughing at him with that lovely smile of his, and Suga was supposed to be bragging about being the one who had helped the man ‘grow a pair’ and start trying to fix things up. And he’d be asking Bokuto if he thought maybe Tooru was thinking about him too, and before he could get an answer, he’d be back in his thoughts, thinking about how happy Tooru had been that afternoon when he had gone to see him. And about the slight pout he had had on his lips when Matsukawa and Akaashi announced they had found the next step they should take. When they had told them the two crews would have to part ways soon. That had stung, even though Hajime knew it would have to happen one day.

But instead of getting drunk, the pirate was listening to dumb questions that didn’t make any sense and honest answers that sounded like lies. What a night.

“We’ll leave when you tell us what we want to know, dumbass.”  
“Who are you calling dumbass, dumbass?”  
“Your little boyfriend here can speak for himself, can’t he?”  
“You’re not exactly tall either, man. Now back off before things get ugly.”  
“Not until you tell us what you know!”  
“Eita.”

Mister sneer, or Eita, apparently, spared a glance at Ushijima before he took a step back and crossed his arms, mouth held in a thin line, obeying the silent order to back down. The man next to him glanced at him with something akin to worry on his face. But his colleague just kept his eyes forward, glare pointedly obvious.

Wait.

Eita. That name was familiar. Hajime knew he had heard it before.

Ushijima said it with something that almost seemed like discomfort, and it sounded wrong and rough in his ears, as if the man wasn’t used to say it. As if he had to make a conscious effort just to say it. It could’ve been a fake name. But it wasn’t.

There was only one person who Hajime knew had that name. Semi Eita. And he knew for a fact that the Shiratorizawa’s crew didn’t call each other by their first names. Tendou had told them that, just after telling them that he had no idea who the Eagle King was, and that only a few members of the main task force truly knew their captain’s identity. Six of them, in fact.

And six men stood before them now, with a man tall enough to fit the description of the Eagle King as their leader. Names that sounded fake and information they shouldn’t have, a short tempered man that had a grudge against them even though they’d never met before, and eyes that held something behind them that they couldn’t see.

“Mattsun. You have that thing Kuroo and Kenma helped you build?”  
“Uh… yeah.”  
“Good. Use it.”

Later, Hajime would be glad his friend didn’t stall and asked for question. Mattsun probably wasn’t far from coming to the same conclusions he got. So he spun into action, got the metallic device out of his pocket and pushed its button until it lit up red. The small one with the piercing eyes shouted something Hajime didn’t hear over the sound of his heart beating in his ears, but it sounded alarmed. He wasn’t quick enough, however, and their engineers’ newest invention proved to be working all too well.

The thing about image inducers is that they’re as much of a blessing as they are a curse. They hid your identity behind a mask, and people would look at you and see a face they’ll think is yours. But the small device also made sure you didn’t see through the masks other people wore like shields. Lucky for them, then, that Mattsun and Kuroo, with more than a little help from Kenma, could develop a very useful tool, should the need arise to unmask enemies trying to hide from them.

And so, with a bright flash of light from the little thing in Mattsun’s hands that left all of them blinded for a moment, the image inducers were fried. When Hajime could get a grip of his surroundings again, his eyes swept the space where the Shiratorizawa’s task force stood. He heard gasps and shouts, and even some very colorful curses coming from both sides of the room. The spots in his vision finally disappeared and he could see clearly.

Ushijima Wakatoshi stood there, still wearing the same face as before even though now he scowled deeply. Shirabu Kenjiro stood next to him and was still looking at Hajime’s crew, this time searching for something. Apparently, that was the device in Mattsun’s hands. His gaze locked onto it with something like interest. Goshiki Tsutomu had his gun drawn and at the ready, just like Ohira Reon, Kawanishi Taichi and Yamagata Hayato. And then there was Semi Eita, who’s anger was explained now. They had, after all, got his boyfriend to sell them out. But if the man had seemed furious a few minutes ago, he looked downright murderous now.

“Well, well, well, look who we got here. If it isn’t our dear friends from the Shiratorizawa.”

Hajime was tempted to yell at Kuroo to shut up, but one look sent his and Bokuto’s way told the man that it was better not to intervene. Both of them had never had the best of tempers, either never serious enough or too bold in critical situations. Now, though, it seemed like that was turning up like an advantage. The duo had their guns raised and aimed at the enemy, ever quick to react, and they were smiling, Bokuto in sheer surprise at the new development and Kuroo as sly as Hanamaki had been earlier.

The next second, they were leaping into action. Hajime watched them cross the room and start a fight with the men standing in front of them. They had moved so quickly onto the enemy that they hadn’t even had a chance to react before the smirking men were swinging punches at them. Apparently, Kuroo and Bokuto had discarded their guns in favor of engaging into a vicious fist fight.

Hanamaki and Matsukawa followed their example soon after, although Shirabu and Semi were ready for them. Everyone started to pick a fight. Kyoutani was throwing punches after punches at Goshiki, Kindaichi and Kunimi had teamed up on Shirabu and Suga was fighting Semi. The meme team were paired up like always in a fight, synchronized attacks flying toward Ohira at a speed that was almost scary in its accuracy. And Hajime could make use of Tooru’s rambling about his sparring matches with Ushijima, which turned out to be very useful now that he knew exactly where to hit for a chance to defeat the giant. This was going to be a hard battle to win, he knew that. They were attacking elite fighters. But they weren’t so bad either, and with the added advantage of their number, so far the battle was tipping in their favor.

Of course, no one could have guessed that Shiratorizawa had a contingency plan at the ready should the situation turn out just the way it did. Hajime didn’t really catch the shout, but he heard the faint beeping, and he definitely saw their enemies backing away far too quickly for it not to be prepared. But only when Semi, Ohira and Ushijima stayed behind, obviously holding them back and covering for their crew mates, did Hajime realize this was a trap.

“RUN!”

But it was already too late. Just as Ohira stepped through the doors without a look back, the beeping stopped, and they were doomed. It was like the world had erupted in thousands of different sounds. An explosion, then two, and three. Hajime heard Mattsun’s panicked voice yelling out to Makki, who had been the one closest to the bombs, and he thought he heard something like ‘Bo’ before everything came crashing down, and he was on the ground. His head hurt, he was somewhat aware that something had collided with his shoulders and he couldn’t hear anything. He didn’t know if his eyes were closed or not, but he couldn’t see anything either. It was like all his senses were giving up on him.

That was his last thought before he lost consciousness.

☀️

Tooru’s chest hurt, but he didn’t know why. He thought maybe it was his tattoo, but that didn't make any sense. So instead he focused on reorganizing his thoughts. Again. They were all rushing around his head unchecked and he hated it. He had to calm down or else he’d be good for nothing in a few hours. And this was important, he couldn’t mess it up. Hajime trusted him with this. Akaashi an Yahaba too.

He’d just have to put his childish rivalry with Ushiwaka away for a few hours, just the time to ask for a merging of their task force, like they had planned, and then they’d be going separate ways again for a few days, which would give him enough time to unwind. Maybe he could even find a way to ask Hajime on a date. Maybe. If he had the guts to, and if he had time, something he lacked of right about now.

Yes, the plan, right, so, he was meeting up with Ushiwaka to form an alliance and merge the task force together in hopes of catching the Shiratorizawa. Ushiwaka would be difficult, ask all the why's and the how's. He’d be supremely arrogant, as always. Tooru would insult him a few times. Akaashi would be there as mediator. And they’d come to an agreement while Tooru and the Seijoh task force skillfully avoided any topics about the Aobajohsai.

This all worked out well, in theory. Now, he just had to make it happen in practice too. Not too hard to do, right? And Akaashi was going to be there. Everything always went smoothly when Akaashi was there.

Tooru took a deep breath, counted to six and then exhaled. Just a few days. A few days and he’d see Hajime again, and they would sort everything out just like they always did. He just wished his chest would stop hurting right now. It was like his heart was being torn out of his chest.

Yahaba had to have something for that.


	8. The one where things did not go as expected, but worked out in the end (or alternatively, no one would survive without Akaashi there)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long absence, school has been killing me lately!  
> The next chapter will be the epilogue.  
> Thank you for reading this and please let me know if you liked it!

Of all the things that Tooru hoped wouldn’t happen, this had to be the worst. And no, he was not being _overly_ dramatic, Yahaba! He was pissed and taken off guard, and really hungry for some reason (yeah, okay, maybe there was a reason, being that he was too stressed out this morning to eat anything). And on top of all that, Akaashi wasn’t here! He wouldn’t survive without Akaashi! Nobody would survive without Akaashi!

But do you know who’s here _even though no one invited him?_ Governor Washijo, that’s who! When he really thought about it, Tooru wasn’t that surprised. Of course the man would want to be here and watch over his former star student as he made a deal with his long time rival. Still, this brought along a lot of unwanted attention to their meeting. This was supposed to be kept confidential, especially amongst the Council. Irihata had given them his word that he’d help them with the procedures and would keep the media and any unwanted attention away from them.

But _Governor_ Washijo was here. And people noticed when a Governor traveled halfway across the galaxy to come to the Capital and met up with a former student in a conference room of one of the buildings owned by the Council. The conference room that just so happened to be above the Seijoh task force’s headquarters, where both his team and Ushijima’s were currently stationed. Tooru could already imagine the reporters piling up outside the place in a few hours from now, waiting for them to come out and bombard them with questions about what they had been discussing in there, especially since pretty much everyone around here knew about his not so fond feelings for Ushiwaka and how odd it was that they actually met up. Someone would eventually bring up their task forces. Another someone would come to a conclusion that would be somewhat close to the truth. And by tomorrow morning, all of the newspaper headlines around the sector would already only talk about this.

Which meant that any chance of surprising the Shiratorizawa with their teaming up would go down the drain. Even with their combined forces and resources, their head start on the pirates would be lost. If they hadn’t gone under yet, they certainly would now.

Seriously, why did Akaashi have to disappear today of all days! Tooru wasn’t really worried about that fact, the other man tended to do that from time to time, and would eventually resurface one morning. He’d greet him in the meeting room of their headquarters like always with a new lead to give him. It had taken a while for the team to get used to how Akaashi worked, but eventually they fell into a sort of routine. Plus, Kenma had a tracker on everyone of them, so he’d know where his friend ran off to and alert them if ever something was to happen. Still, the fact remained, Tooru really wished he could have some assistance right now. No one else of his colleagues was qualified to act as his second in command, and he couldn’t really just name another because the current one ran off to some unknown location.

He was broken out of his thoughts by Ushiwaka of all people. The man was facing him, as tall as ever and still the most infuriating man Tooru had ever met in all of his life.

“Oikawa, you wanted us to talk about the possibility of merging our two task forces.”

He was aware his smile was too sweet to appear as anything but blatantly fake, but he really couldn’t stop himself. He sat down across from the other man and slid the file he had in his hands on the table. Ushijima picked it up from where it ended up in front of him. Tooru didn’t look away even once while his rival looked through the information he had collected. He almost wished he saw a little bit of surprise in the stoic man. Of course, he saw nothing.

“Yes, that’s why I wanted us to meet up here, although I wasn’t aware you’d notify the whole planet of this. I thought my message asking for a confidential meeting was pretty clear.”

Ushijima looked up at him when he was finished, and there was a look in his eyes Tooru couldn’t identify. It pissed him off more than it maybe should have, but he hated the thought of not being able to read someone, and this man sitting straight as a pole in front of him was exactly that: unreadable. That had been one of the reasons why they hadn’t been able to get along, at first. Still was.

“I did keep this meeting a secret. It seems my second in command did not respect my wishes that he keep this to himself, however. For what it is worth, I am also sorry we could not talk of this in a more… calm setting.”

That look still wasn’t gone. Tooru almost screamed.

“Well, there’s nothing to be done now, is there? I think we should carry on.”

Of course, that’s when Governor Washijo decided to come back into the room, his apparently important phone call ended. He made his way through the door, his secretary at his side. The old man sat down on a chair next to Ushijima and his employee remained standing up, pad and pencil in hand, although he held both like he might a shield and a sword. The whole scene, from where Tooru sat, looked taken straight from a medieval era. The King on his throne, the prince his son by his side, as they overlooked an important trade deal, and the lieutenant of the guards standing by them, piercing eyes never leaving his liege.

The impression didn’t fade as the conversation picked up again, and Tooru could have sworn he knew those eyes staring at him from across the table when he met the gaze of that strange secretary.

“I suppose that you have all of the evidence needed to prosecute both of those pirate ships when we catch them.”  
“All I have on the Shiratorizawa crew is in this file. As for the Aobajohsai, I have it in my personal files. I thought it wise not to mix them up, since the charges against them differ.”

Governor Washijo scoffed from his seat. He hadn’t addressed Tooru even once since he had arrived almost an hour ago, only greeting his former student and then disappearing to make his phone call.

“That looks more like you’re keeping information from us, boy. And I bet it’s important information. Or maybe you just have nothing on those fools and decided to go after the Shiratorizawa instead, trying to save face in front of the Council after a failed mission of this importance.”

Tooru tried his best to keep his fury well hidden when he spoke, giving his answer to the man through gritted teeth. To his credit, Ushijima looked almost offended by Washijo’s words. For a man usually so blunt, he never did seem to like it when someone was being disrespected in front of him. Even if that person was Tooru.

That was _almost_ commendable.

“I assure you, Governor, that I am only interested in the Shiratorizawa because the criminals I am after are now tied to them. And as for keeping the intel I have on the Aobajohsai’s whereabouts confidential, I simply judged the current situation not optimal to share them with my colleague.”  
“I trust Oikawa will tell me what I need to know about the Aobajohsai when I need to know it, Governor.”

It was surprising to hear Ushiwaka of all people take his side, especially since it meant he had to stand up to his former teacher, which was more than unusual for the man. Still, this was a welcomed advantage, even if the words burned his throat when he said them.

“Thank you, Ushijima.”

The man nodded, the Governor scoffed again and the secretary stared at Tooru with something akin to curiosity in his eyes. He almost glared at the man, just to see how he’d react. He refrained from doing so, of course, or else he’d never hear the end of it when Akaashi would be informed.

“Well, let’s get on with this. What advantages does a merging of your task force with the Shiratorizawa’s would bring them?”  
“A wider chance of catching not one, but two pirate ships, and a more effective search, since both our teams would join forces. This merging is essential. The Aobajohsai and the Shiratorizawa have made a deal. With their forces combined, they’ll be impossible to catch without the proper help needed, help we can bring you and you can bring us in return.”  
“And what about the arrest? If something were to happen, and we could only get one of them in custody?”  
“Separated, they cause less of a threat, and in the eventuality that such unfortunate events were to happen, we could disband our alliance. There’s really no need for two task forces after only one pirate ship.”  
“That seems about right. But what about casualties?”

Tooru blinked, at a loss for words. He had not really expected a question like this. Both of their task force members were professionals, they were some of the best agents and fighters of the whole organization. They wouldn’t die easily, and they sure as hell always made sure not to put each other in situations where they had to make a choice as heart wrenching as having to choose whether or not to bring down the enemy if it meant bringing down friends or colleagues along with them. Plus, they were tasked with bringing the pirates to justice, not play executioners.

But there clearly was something Ushijima wanted to hear from him right now, and it could very well be what would make or break this proposition he had made him. He couldn’t risk losing this chance.

“Any lost we suffer, the criminals we are after will be held accountable for. In our case, the Aobajohsai, in yours, the Shiratorizawa.”

Tooru, later, would curse himself for his lack of attention. He prided himself in his acute sense of observation, yet he missed the blue light of the recording device, the secretary’s smile that was nothing short of victorious and Ushijima’s careful change in demeanor after he said those words. Hajime would be mortified to see him in this position, if he had been with him. But come on, give him a break, how could he expect that damned Ushiwaka to pull a gun on him and send the secretary suddenly turned into _Shirabu_ downstairs to alert their crew that it was time to move?

Even Washijo seemed surprised. It wasn’t a good look on him. His face was red and his eyes were wide, and Tooru almost feared the shock would give him a heart attack.

“Ushijima, what is the meaning of this?”

For once in his life, Ushiwaka smiled. That’s the most emotions Tooru had ever seen him show in years of knowing him. It wasn’t a big smile showing teeth, it wasn’t even menacing or really malicious. It was small, a stretch of his lips, as if he wasn’t used to smiling and was still trying to fight off the expression. But the accomplishment was there in his eyes, clear as day. He was proud of this little scene. Tooru would have probably been too, if he had been the one holding the gun.

“For someone who’s always been so prideful of his skills, Oikawa, you sure were easy to fool.”

He glared at the man, hands held in the air. He hadn’t realized he was on his feet before he was staring at Ushijima with all of his height, only a couple of centimeters keeping him from being eye to eye with the man.

Something like eight centimeters, more or less.

When it clicked, Tooru almost banged his head against the table. Ushijima really was unreadable.

“So that’s why you wore an image inducer even under that mask? You knew I’d recognize you.”

The small smile was gone, replaced by an almost calm expression, or as calm as Ushijima would ever appear. There were the sounds of a fight coming from below them, now, reaching their ears. Gunshots, screams, growls and fists connecting with bones. Tooru tried to reach for his own gun as subtly as he could.

“I was impressed when you managed to steal it from me. I really thought you would die trying to pass the crossfire. I suppose I underestimated you.”  
“Seems like you’re the one I underestimated. Or maybe overestimated. How did a man like you become one of the most wanted criminals across the galaxy? Got tired of being the good guy?”

Something in Ushijima’s eyes changed. It seemed like he didn’t like those words very much. It was Tooru’s turn to smile, all teeth and no joy. He had struck a nerve. That would hopefully buy them all some time.

“Or maybe you never really were a good guy, hmm, Ushiwaka?”  
“Don’t call me that.”  
“Well, you’re apparently about to kill me, so I’d rather make the most of this.”  
“Oh, don’t worry. You won’t die now. Him, however...”

Tooru did not expect the gunshot. Ushijima hadn’t even looked at the man as he fired, straight through the heart. The old Governor collapsed before he could say another word, dead as he hit the ground. The Seijoh’s leader stepped forward, in hopes of doing what, he didn’t know, since the man was dead already, but he could just stare back at Ushijima in horror when the gun was aimed at him again.

“You… you just...”  
“He was old and useless, cruel, and almost blew up my plan. No one will miss him, least of all me.”  
“He trusted you!”  
“He shouldn’t have, and neither should you.”

His hands were shaking. He clenched them into fists and let them fall at his side. His jaw was starting to hurt with how much he was gritting his teeth, but he didn’t care. How could this man, this man who only hours ago was still standing at his former star student’s side with pride in his eyes when he talked about him, be killed in cold blood like this? The Governor was far from a saint, and did so much wrong in his life he would be sent to prison if anyone had enough evidence against him, but… but he didn’t deserve to die by the hands of the one man he had almost raised!

“You’ll pay for that.”  
“Oh? And who, exactly, will ensure that I do? You? You’ll be dead in an hour. Your little pirate boyfriend?”

Tooru could feel his heart leap in his throat, could hear no more but the buzzing in his ears that only grew louder and louder as panic grew, but still let through each of this bastard’s words. He tried to stifle it the best he could, but he found out he couldn’t. Hajime… Hajime wasn’t… he couldn’t be.

He couldn’t be.

“I already took care of him and his crew. They are probably still buried under that old building we left them in before the bomb went off.”  
“SHUT UP!”

At that moment, he didn’t really care that he had a gun aimed at his head, or that the man before him was as well trained as him. He threw himself at him, diving under a bullet shot in his direction. He kicked the gun out of Ushijima’s hands and didn’t even think about reaching for his, crashing into the other man instead. He sent them both to the ground, they collided with chairs and furniture that hurt like hell, and as soon as he could get up on his knees, he was sending punches at his enemy’s face, putting all of his rage into it. Only two blows connected. Ushijima caught his fists before he could avoid it and threw him off of him. The man was strong, and he was sent barreling into the wall behind him, his head colliding with the hard surface.

He was still reeling, struggling to get back to his feet, when the Eagle King got up and took up his gun again. Tooru, when he managed to get back up, leaned against the wall to stay upright, and stared back at Ushijima as he walked towards him, gun in hand again.

One second he closed his eyes, ready for the gunshot that was surely coming his way, and the next he heard a scream, his own name in fact, and a gunshot from somewhere near the door. When he opened his eyes, he saw that Ushijima no longer had aimed at him but was taking cover behind the table, gunshots embedding themselves into it at an alarming rate.

Hajime was there, shooting at their enemy, making his way to him without his eyes leaving Ushijima even once. He looked like hell, one of his arms was in a cast, he had a nasty cut on his jaw and bandages peeking out of his shirt collar. When he reached him, he took a stand before him, as if ready to act as his own shield if the Eagle King was about to retaliate.

He had stopped shooting, saving his bullets, and glanced at Tooru quickly before he was turning his attention back toward Ushijima. A quiet way to assess any injury, and to make sure he was okay. Tooru had to refrain from hugging him, one because it really wasn’t the time, and two because he was pretty sure he had broken a rib somewhere during his clash with Ushijima and it was hurting like hell.

A shot was sent at Hajime’s head which he ducked under quickly, pulling Tooru down with him as well. They hid behind a broken wood panel that used to be the table for refreshments in the corner of the room. Tooru had broken his fall, quiet involuntarily, with it, and now there were shards of glass and water on the floor. His gun had fallen out of his holster during the fight, and he wondered for a moment if a half broken glass still filled with a little water would make a suitable weapon or projectile. Probably not. He reached for Hajime’s second gun instead.

“Hey!”  
“I don’t have mine, it fell off!”  
“What idiot loses a gun in the middle of the fight?”  
“This very unprepared, very surprised idiot, if you must know!”  
“Whatever, Shittykawa.”  
“Rude, Iwa-chan. Now focus and shoot at the bastard instead of insulting me!”

The wave of relief that crashed into him when Hajime spared him a glare over his shoulder as he aimed from the side of the table was almost enough for him to start sobbing, but he really couldn’t allow that to happen right now. Instead, he also leaned against the side of the table and aimed at the other side, trying to catch sight of Ushijima. The man was still hiding, most probably recharging his own gun. They had a window, and Tooru looked back at Hajime, about to say just that, when he caught a movement from the corner of his eye.

“Haji, run!”

They made a break for it just as Semi and Shirabu dropped from the ceiling, right in front of them, and attacked them. Hajime had made it to the door, but Tooru was stuck with Semi engaging in hand to hand combat with him after he kicked the gun out of his hand. He caught him in a headlock and threw them on the floor. Tooru hissed when the shock jostled his ribs. He moved out of the headlock and tried to make a break for the door again, Semi hot on his heels. Hajime had waited for him, and now they were both running down the stairs as fast as they could.

Tooru knew they had started to fight down here too, but he really hadn’t expected things to be so bad. Their communal room was unrecognizable, the living room had apparently been blown off, which was strange since he heard no explosion, and almost all of the windows in the place had been broken, the stove from the kitchen hanging precariously from the edge of one of the windowsills. It was complete chaos.

Hinata and Kageyama were fighting back to back and the orange haired operative seemed like he was having the time of his life as Kageyama made sure he was covering their blindsides. Yachi was running after who seemed to be Soekawa Jin, one of the members of the Shiratorizawa they had yet to come across with, who was carrying a computer in his hands. The meme duo were fighting Ohira Reon and Kawanishi Taichi, and they too seemed pretty roughed up. Tooru really had to ask about that explosion later. For now, they still had a fight to win, apparently.

“Hey hey hey! You weren’t expecting us, now were you?”

Somehow, when Bokuto came flying down from the ceiling, or maybe falling down would be a better word, Tooru found himself smiling. Things couldn’t be so bad if their resident owl impersonator could still run his mouth. Especially if Kuroo wasn’t far behind, guns in hands and shooting every enemy member that even came remotely close to where Kenma was trying to contact the authorities to get some backup.

Tooru didn’t really have much more time to observe the situation because the few seconds he had allowed himself to catch his breath had been enough for Semi to catch up with him. He turned around when he heard the hurried footsteps and was just fast enough to dodge the punch aimed at his nose. Before he knew it, they were fighting each other, Shirabu joining the others and apparently deemed Suga as a suitable enemy.

When it became apparent that Tooru was having troubles keeping up with the furious pace of the man fighting him, falling back onto defense only, Hajime tried to come and help him, but Ushijima prevented that from happening, stepping between the two and starting his own fight against the other pirate captain.

That’s when Akaashi decided to reappear, catching him before he made a wrong step and got himself sent to the floor by Semi. Both friends looked at each other for a second, then fell into their usual fighting stances when they fought together: side by side, Akaashi on the offense and Tooru on the defense. Semi grinned, obviously glad things were finally levelling up. When he was at his best, Tooru could easily be on par with him, but hurt like he was, it really wasn’t any fun. This at least will be challenging.

Tooru had no idea how long all of this took, or even who was really winning this battle. Semi, who normally chose to lean on offense a lot more than on defense during a fight, now had to fall back on more defense, but he still wasn’t losing this fight. He was good, really good, it was a shame he wasn’t on their side. Tooru could almost imagine them being friends. But that wasn’t about to happen any time soon.

Everyone was fighting, even Yahaba, who normally stayed as far away from the battlefield as he could manage. Right now, he and Kyoutani were fighting Akakura Kei and Goshiki Tsutomu. Tooru was worried, for a second, when he thought he saw Yahaba being shot, but it ended up with his friend ducking on the ground and swiping Akakura’s feet from under him, sending the man falling down hard. After that, Semi got a good one in, sending a punch to his shoulder, which was still healing, and he had to put all of his attention into the fight again.

Tooru could tell their opponent was starting to grow tired, punches a bit less powerful than before and stance more open to attacks, but so was he. Akaashi was still fighting like he always did, sure of his every move and graceful even as he sent a punch flying Semi’s way, but he was leaning a bit more on defense too now, which usually was his tell. Really, this had to stop, or else they’d all just end up collapsing on the floor. That would be rather pitiful.

Of course, when he had thought that this should stop soon, he hadn’t imagined this.

Ushijima and Hajime were still fighting, and had taken it to the staircase more than the floor. It gave Hajime an advantage, he could easily protect his bad arm while still fighting off the other man’s attacks. But somehow, that had also been his undoing. Tooru had just spotted him sending a punch to Ushijima’s face when the other man stepped aside, turned around and caught his arm in both of his hands, lifting his weight over his shoulder and throwing him over his head. Hajime couldn’t fight him off and was sent crashing at the bottom of the stairs.

Tooru had rushed over to him, but before he could get closer, Ushijima had a foot on Hajime’s chest and his gun aimed at his head.

“Don’t move or I’ll shoot.”

The room froze. This was the line none of them would cross, no matter who was on the receiving end of the death threat. That was what made them so different from the Shiratorizawa, who would shoot just about anyone to ensure their victory. Tooru came to a stop just a few feet away from Hajime, who stared at him with worried eyes from where he was on the ground, looking at him upside down. Again, the panic he had felt earlier seized him again, and he almost fell to his knees.

“Drop your weapons, all of you.”

Every member of their teams had stopped, letting guns and the occasional blade slowly fall to the ground and raising their hands in the air. Kuroo growled when Soekawa took the computer from Kenma’s hands, very obviously refraining from coming in front of Kenma to protect him. His boyfriend sent him a glare and he calmed down just enough that Soekawa relaxed and stepped away. When no one else from the Shiratorizawa was looking at them, Kenma gave him a smile, a small ‘I’m okay’. It seemed enough for Kuroo.

“Now, are the cameras still disconnected?”  
“Yeah.”  
“We only have about ten minutes, though. The little guy there got in contact with Governor Irihata two minutes ago.”

Kenma smirked, and that in itself was already a feat. Bokuto laughed and Kuroo followed. Hinata raised a fist in the air and Kageyama scolded him. Tooru really couldn’t have hoped for more. If Hajime’s face hadn’t currently been turning red from the difficulty he had to breathe, those last moments of their lives could have been sweet.

“Well then, we’ll make this quick.”

Semi raised his guns to Akaashi and Tooru’s heads, and the rest of the crew did the same, aiming for the head. Kuroo was losing it again, stepping in front of Kenma and shielding him with his body even when the smaller man tried to get him to fall back behind him. Kyoutani was trying to provoke the guy that had aimed at Yahaba, who was screaming at him to stop it. Mattsun had taken Makki’s hand and was standing close by his side, tears streaming down his face. Makki smiled at him, dropping a kiss on his cheek. It was really all they could do.

When the first gunshot was heard, everyone was broken out of their stupor, and it seemed like the earlier threat had lost its power. They were already about to die, so why not go down fighting at least? Tooru wished he could share that feeling. Instead, he stared at Ushijima, still and unmoving, even as Iwaizumi screamed at him to run.

The next few moments, something really incredible happened. Bokuto apparently was never out of ideas, and so when he called for Hinata and threw something his way, the orange haired man caught it. He stared at Bokuto in confusion, but then the owl incarnated signed something with his hands and gestured to Ushijima. Hinata took off running just after that.

Semi hadn’t fired, for whatever reason there was, and Akaashi had managed to pick up their fight where they had left it. Tooru got thrown on the floor when they both crashed onto him, and the three of them, plus Hajime who was still looking at Tooru a moment ago, all watched, dumbstruck, as Hinata Shouyo came running at Ushijima and actioned the device in his hands before throwing at the Eagle King with all of his strength.

The Shiratorizawa’s crew were screaming, trying to reach their captain, even as the blinding light had all of them close their eyes in surprise. Semi had tried to got up, but Akaashi had him in a headlock on the ground. No one could get out of Akaashi’s headlocks.

Shirabu reached him first. Ushijima had fallen back onto the stairs, involuntarily freeing Hajime, who had rolled away from him and was struck in a fit of coughing. Tooru rushed to him as soon as he got back on his feet.

The device wasn’t even done with its trick yet. The blinding light was only the first part. Everyone who hadn’t closed their eyes soon enough were now rendered temporarily blind. That put some of the Shiratorizawa’s crew out. Then, there was the magnetic field it created, which would make every light in the building and every power source have a short circuit. In an instant, the lights were off. Kiyoko, however, remained unaffected. From then on out, it was easy to activate the thermal vision every member of the Seijoh task force and the Aobajohsai had in their contact lenses.

Taking down the Shiratorizawa became a piece of cake, then. It was almost funny how easy it was to knock them down and handcuff them while Governor Irihata’s unit was blocking all of the exits from outside.

An hour later, and the Shiratorizawa’s entire crew was apprehended, the ship recovered from its secret hangar and Ushijima charged with treason against the Council and first-degree murder. However, when Semi Eita was about to be given his charges, Tooru stepped in. With a smile, he sent the police officers away to report to Governor Irihata.

“You’re free to go.”

The surprise on the former hitman’s face was evident. He didn’t even try to hide it. Tooru’s smile became smaller, almost apologetic, as he continued. The more he talked, the more Semi’s whole facade fell apart, until he was as white as a sheet and tears were falling down his face.

“Tendou Satori, acting as our informer, made a deal with me. If he was to deliver on his end of our bargain, which he did, I would have to let him go freely. However, that’s not all. He also bought your way out. You are free of all charges held against you and now or in the past, and will be allowed to walk away from here, as long as you promise not to contact any current member of the Shiratorizawa’s crew starting now and for the next five years.”  
“Like hell! I’d rather go to prison with my family! He’s not doing this to me now, I won’t let him!”  
“The deal is already done, and I’m afraid I have no choice but to order you to go.”

Semi tried to argue again, this time even stepping forward and into Tooru’s face, scowling up at him. Akaashi was there in seconds, ready for a rematch, but Tooru held him back. They had all fought enough for today.

“Semi.”

All of them turned to face Ushijima, who was being dragged to the police ship. The flashing lights of the scene were coloring strange patterns across his face, yet his stoic expression was still present, undeterred by the events or the chaotic scene of their arrest taking place around him. The officers seemed too intimidated by him to refuse him when he made them stop. Tooru didn’t know what he wanted to say to Semi, and was almost ready to tell him to shut it, because surely the man would not want his colleague to get away with this if he couldn’t, but…

Ushijima Wakatoshi was unreadable.

“Go. Please. The terms are respectable.”

Then, a third, bolder officer came forward and made the men move again. Ushijima didn’t look back as he was forced on the ship that would take him to the Council, where he would be judged for his crimes and sent to prison along with the rest of his crew. Semi watched them all get in from the side, and some of them even looked back and nodded his way, giving him a final goodbye before they were sent away. Ohira even smiled, and Semi smiled back, small and worried, before the doors closed behind the last one to get in and the ship took off, leaving them in the dust.

Tooru watched him, from afar. Semi only left the sidewalk he had been standing on and slipped into the nearby alleyway leading to the closest hangar when the police forces all left, and when the flashing lights were long gone. Only the Seijoh was still there. With how blown up their headquarters were, there was no chance they’d spend the night there, like they usually did. The Aobajohsai, of course, had already left before the first officer stepped through the doors of their headquarters. They left by a secret door leading to the roof, and if everything had gone like it was supposed to, they had left ten minutes later after a race across the rooftops of the Capital that led them to where they had stored their ship.

_“I’d rather go to prison with my family!”_

Tooru couldn’t get Semi’s words to leave him alone. They stuck like a broken record in his mind, playing over and over again. Did Semi really think of the Shiratorizawa’s crew as his family? Those criminals had already shot one of theirs before, and were ruthless in all the sense of the word. Yet they hadn’t shown any anger when Semi was freed. Ushijima himself told him to go.

Maybe even criminals like them could be loyal to some extent, then.

“Hey.”

Tooru looked at his left side, where Akaashi had walked up to. The man surely had seen better days. His hair was a mess and there was dry blood on his forehead. His lower lip was bleeding and he was limping, putting more weight on his right leg when he had to stand still. It didn’t stop him from smiling like he so rarely did, proud and relieved. Tooru almost smiled too. The thoughts swirling in his head wouldn’t really let him be, so he preferred to turn his head back to what had been their home for the past months instead, facing the damage. He really was going to miss this place.

“Hey.”  
“How’s it going?”  
“Better than I thought it would.”  
“I’m not talking about the arrest.”

Tooru pouted, and Akaashi signed.

“Let’s go. If Yahaba learns that you’ve not gone to the medic yet, he’s going to kill you.”  
“Fine, but you have to tell me what you were doing while you were gone those last few days.”  
“Oh, that’s easy. Kenma picked up a signal from the Aobajohsai. They needed help, so he sent me to look for them. When I did find them, they were all in pretty bad shape. They told me about the Eagle King being Ushijima and we rushed back here. Oh, and Bokuto proposed to me.”  
“What?”  
“I’m 80% sure he was joking. We’ve only been dating for about a month, after all.”  
“Again, and sorry for repeating myself, but, _what?_ ”


	9. Epilogue (or the one where everyone gets a happy ending)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this is a bit rushed, I'll correct it when I have more time.  
> I hope you like it and thank you so much for reading!

Hajime woke up to the sound of little feet paddling quickly across the floor of his room, and he had exactly three seconds to brace himself before a small yet very pointy elbow collided with his ribs and his breath was sucked out of his lungs by the sudden weight on his chest. He groaned loudly and made to bury his head in his pillow, except it was stolen right from under his head and was used as a weapon to start hitting him square in the face.

Oh, the joys of having children.

“Baba! It’s time to wake up! Daddy says breakfast is ready!”

He cracked an eye open and came face to face with his daughter, grinning brightly down at him. She hit him in the face with the pillow again, this time at full force. He winced and sighed before raising his hands up in the air to stop the second attack and snatch the pillow from Ursa, who started giggling madly. He threw the weapon of choice of his daughter away before he sat up and rubbed at his eyes, keeping watch on the mischievous six-year-old girl who had decided to get off the bed and start rummaging through his bedside drawers. 

“I’m up, I’m up, Ursa. Sweety, what are you doing?”

“Daddy said he’s cold, so I’m searching for warmth.”

When he found the willpower to actually get up, it was because Ursa had moved on to his dresser in the other side of the room, and aside from messing up his clothes, there was something there she could not find, or else he could put the last four months of work to total waste. He loved his daughter to the moon and back, but she could not keep a secret for herself, it was an impossible task to ask of her.

“Ursa, I’ll get it, okay? Just- no! Not in that drawer!”

Of course the little monster opened said drawer and got out the small box before promptly looking back at him with the most sheepish grin he’d ever seen, taught by the master of sheepish grins, Oikawa Tooru himself. He just had enough time to reach over and grab the box before Ursa could open it, but his daughter was far from defeated. Her curiosity was piqued, and this mundane morning had just become interesting. At least, that’s what she stated as she started to climb up his leg like a monkey. How she knew words like that, he had no idea.

“Baba! Let me see, let me see! Is it for daddy? Are you going to give him that box when you go out on that secret date you kept from us?”

“Ursa!”

The pointed look he sent at the door, which he hoped to all the stars above had muffled the sound of the squabbling happening here, seemed to remind the young girl what the word “secret” meant. At least she lowered her voice when she spoke again, but it probably had more to do with the fact that she was now hanging from his arm like a koala and was much closer to his face than before. 

“Well, are you?”

He sent one last worried glance over at the door before sighing rather dramatically, which, now that he realized, had probably been an influence of living with Tooru for so long. Only that man could have enough dramatic habits in store to rub some of it off on him without any of them noticing until it was too late to be undone. And as if the sighs weren’t enough already, he had to go planning a super elaborate date for his boyfriend only for their daughter to uncover it all now and unintentionally ruin it two days before it was set to happen. 

He’d done such a good job at keeping it a secret! And how did Ursa find out? Just when the question popped up in his head, the guilty looks on Kuroo’s and Mattsun’s faces came to mind, and he silently cursed them. Of course they’d let it slip to Ursa of all people!

There was only one way left to salvage all of this. He’d have to be honest with his six-year-old daughter, which now was smiling down at him from her perch on his shoulder, and hope she could keep this to herself for two days without bursting it out the first step they’d take out of the bedroom.

Well, here goes nothing.

“Yes, sweety, I’m going to give this to your father when we go out next Friday. It’s really important you don’t say a word about it to him, though, you understand? Baba spent a lot of time on this, and he’d be really sad if the surprise got ruined.”

She smiled at him and nodded along to his words, and when he finished she had the most solemn look on her face Hajime had ever seen in his life. He was worried for all of two seconds before his daughter was whispering:

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell daddy.” 

“Thank you.”

“But on one condition.”

He sighed, relieved, until Ursa hoped off of his shoulder and snatched the box from him like it was second nature to steal a jewelry box in mid air before landing on the ground in a crouch and start running around the bed. Granted, it probably was. The habit wasn’t intentional on their part, it’s just that at some point the stories about their adventures through space and whatnot had probably inspired their daughter a bit too much.

He was stunned for a moment, and then started running after his daughter. It was pointless, she was much faster than he was, and it was impossible to catch her as she ran around the room and jumped on the bed to evade him. 

“Ursa, you can’t do that! That’s not nice!”

“But you used to steal stuff all the time too!”

Were they… were they bad parents?

“I want to see, I want to see!”

Hajime had just somehow managed to wrap a blanket around his daughter, trapping her in his hold, when the box popped open and Ursa held out the box far enough away from him so it was out of his grasp. The silver ring glinted softly in the morning light pouring in from the bedroom window, perfectly highlighting the small emerald embedded in the middle, and he could have sworn he heard his daughter mumble a small, awed “shit” before he finally snatched the box back and closed it.

Yep, they had failed at being parents. They were bad parents. They’d done it, they had reached an entirely new level of lows.

He hoisted his daughter up in his arms and gave her his most serious look, the one she and Tooru made fun of with a passion. She started giggling the second he could muster the smallest of scowls, and he really tried to keep a smile at bay, he really did, but he failed miserably, in the end.

When the giggles died down and Ursa was focused on him once again, he cleared his throat and said:

“Ursa, now that you’ve seen the ring and your conditions were met, do we have a deal? You won’t tell daddy?”

She grinned at him with way too much teeth and way too much energy for this early an hour in the morning. What time was it anyway? Six? The clock on the bedside table told him it was actually eight. He’d slept in this morning. And Tooru hadn’t woken him up, and he was making breakfast. 

He’d really score the best boyfriend in the galaxy, didn’t he?

Ursa broke him out of his daydream with an entirely unapologetic smile on her face.

“I want chocolate cake for dessert tonight.”

“You… are you bargaining with me, young girl?”

“Absolutely.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Please!”

The look on her face was a look he’d seen countless times on Tooru’s face, and he liked to think he was immune to it, but even he wasn’t that deep in denial. As he went about tidying up the room and putting the box safely back under a pile of old shirt neither he or Tooru ever wore these days, with Ursa still tucked in his arms - because you can never be too careful -, he said:

“Fine. Chocolate cake for desert, but you have to eat all of your vegetables first, and not a word of this to our father. Deal?”

She shook his hand as if she’d just sealed a business deal of utmost importance and, with her chin up in the air, she squirmed out of his arms and sprinted out of the room as fast as her small legs could allow her. Which was very fast. He almost expected to see flames leaping off of where her feet touched the ground before he remembered he wasn’t in a children’s cartoon show. 

When he walked out of the room, he was met with the smell of freshly brewed coffee and waffles. He followed the scent down to the first story of the house, where he found his boyfriend at the stove and his daughter setting the table. He couldn’t help but smile at the sight. He’d really gotten lucky at some point in his life, to have this to wake up to in the morning everyday, hopefully for the rest of his life.

Tooru threw him a look over his shoulder when he walked up to the counter and wrapped his arms around his waist, burying his face in the crook of of his neck. The brown haired man chuckled softly, ruffling his hair and pressing a kiss to his forehead before turning back to the pan and lifting the eggs off with a spatula, setting them in the plate. He handed it to Ursa, issuing a “careful, it’s hot” as they both watched her make her way to the table and set the porcelain dish down in the center of the wooden panel. She turned back to them with a bright smile before sitting down and seizing the stack of waffles, stating it was hers and they couldn’t have any of it. 

Hajime snatched the plate away from her hands before putting one in her plate as Tooru sat down next to her. They dug into the food with little complaining heard from Ursa, who probably had just done so out of habit. Breakfast was a peaceful affair, and they teased and joked just enough so that Hajime was certain his boyfriend hadn’t heard anything of what was said earlier. He was glad. 

And if he got a bewildered look from Tooru when he came back from work and found father and daughter trying - keyword being _trying_ , yet miserably failing \- to make what had at first looked like a simple enough chocolate cake, well, it was totally worth having to clean up the kitchen as Tooru fixed their mess and made them a perfect chocolate cake out of the scrap they’d left.

Two days later, he was on one knee and proposing to a crying Tooru, who squealed louder than any grown man ever should be able to, and leaped in his arms, whispering a dozen “yes” in the space between them before crashing their lips together.

He smiled against his lips and wrapped his fiancé in a hug, the joy bubbling inside his chest threatening to burst out at any moment, because this was too perfect to be true. 

☀️

Hajime would have never thought here’s where he’d end up, living a perfect life with his amazing family, years ago when he’d first stepped inside the Aobajohsai, set on picking up his mother’s legacy where she’d left off. 

His first tattoo hadn’t disappeared. It wouldn’t, ever. And he would not have it any other way. 

He hadn’t given up his pirate’s life completely, mind you, but he had given the reins to a new captain, and only scarcely went on mission nowadays. Tooru had been very clear about the fact that he had no intention of running after him for the rest of their lives. Hajime hadn’t been that hard to convinced that they should settle down when they got serious again, after a year of dating. They’d adopted a three-year-old Ursa two years later, and now, here they were, living a somewhat more normal life. Tooru had found a job as the head of the research department in biogenetic engineering at Governor Irihata’s Academy. It had been his actual degree while he was studying there, and since he passed with flying colors and had gotten a very good recommendation letter from Irihata himself, it had been no trouble getting the job. Hajime had feared he’d get bored working a job without any adrenaline rush or fights against dangerous pirates, but Tooru had settled quite well. 

He’d learn later that his fiancé had a habit of meeting up with Tendou Satori over the weekends to discuss various things, such as how best to expose the weapon smuggling of a member of the Council over to the Ryuunan armies, a military force trying to overcome a small system of peaceful planets allied with the Council. When it was made public information and the Governor was arrested and sentenced for three life sentences, Tooru admitted to being the one who leaked out the information, and Hajime wanted to be made he kept it from him, really, but he was just too damn proud to care.   
  


So, yes, they lived a fairly normal life, if you count piracy and ties with reformed criminals now working to expose corrupt government members to be a part of a “normal” life experience.

When Ursa was old enough to enter an Academy, her parents made sure she knew there were a ton of other options for her to choose from, but they didn’t try and stop her, only making sure she knew what she getting into, and that she knew she could back out at any moment if she wanted to. Tooru had been so proud the day she announced them she’d got accepted into Nekoma Academy and would be studying in xenobiology. Kenma, who was the mechanical engineering’s teacher there, promised to keep an eye on her for them, since the Academy was far from home and she’d be moving into the school’s dormitory. That had been a rough decision for her to take, but her parents hadn’t tried to discourage her from leaving, since Nekoma Academy offered the best program in xenobiology all around the galaxy. Tooru and Hajime had made sure she’d come back for most of the weekends, though. 

When she graduated, top of her class at no one’s surprise, there were a few odds looks sent to the handful of people gathered to come to the ceremony. It wasn’t everyday you got to see the former Seijoh’s task force together again, their mysterious partners no one had ever heard of before in tow. After all, since the disband of the Seijoh’s crew after their failure to catch to infamous Aobajohsai, people thought they probably hadn’t kept in contact with each other. They had. And they were being as loud and chaotic as they’d always been. 

Yahaba and Watari had become friends again after a thousand apologies from the latter. Surprisingly, Yahaba had decided to take up the missing position of the second medical attendant in the Aobajohsai, because, let’s be honest, the lot of them got in enough trouble that Watari would never have survived if he tried to take care of all of them on his own. What amused Tooru and Hajime the most about this whole situation, however, was that after years spent on the same damn ship, Kyoutani and Yahaba were still dancing around each other. But no one was worried, they’d get it together soon. 

Akaashi had not long ago been accepted in the elite of the Council’s military forces, and was now leading his own team of very deadly and very dangerous individuals on various counter-terrorism and recon mission around the universe. Kageyama had managed to make the cut for the sniper’s position in his troops, and Hinata joined them a year later.

Of course, no one was ever to learn that Akaashi Keiji had married Bokuto Koutarou, current captain of the Aobajohsai, and that the two snuck out to see each other almost every week to spend the day together in their secret meeting spot even their closest friends knew nothing about.

Kuroo had well and truly retired from piracy, and was now dedicating his life to being a nerd, as Hajime liked to call it. Actually, he’d taken Governor Nekomata up on his offer for a job at the Academy, where he now worked side by side with Kenma. They’d gotten married a year ago, finally tying the knot after so long living together. They’d adopted a baby boy just months after, his name was Yui. The happy parents had named Akaashi and Bokuto as his godfathers. Needless to say witnessing one of the most trained fighter in all of the universe burst into tears the first time he held Yui in his arms was truly a sight to see. Bokuto hadn't been able to hold his tears either.

Semi and Tendou had worked things out, and they were dating again now. Semi still glared at every single one of them when they met, which was not often. Tendou had tried to rope him into joining his crazy and very dangerous self appointed missions unmasking corrupted important figures of the Council, and it had been an apparently good way for Semi to adjust better to a more mundane life. Tooru still teamed up with them on various occasions, and Hajime and the Aobajohsai did as well, although it was more rare. They had a reputation as pirates to uphold, after all. 

As for Hajime and Tooru, they’d gotten married a couple of mouths after he’d asked, on the sandy shore of their home planet, their parents and friends all present to witness their union, and their daughter proudly announcing to everyone that  _ finally, her super awesome pirate baba was marrying her super cool captain dad! _ They had to keep an eye on the tapes of the wedding, because if it ever was leaked out, people might start to wonder exactly who Hajime really was, besides the childhood friend of the famous Oikawa Tooru, who’d taken down the Shiratorizawa with the rest of the Seijoh task force more than ten years ago.

That's how everything played out for them, and really, Hajime wouldn’t have had it any other way. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAAAAAAAH my favorite author just posted a new chapter of their fic and it was super angsty and I'm not crying you are!
> 
> Anyway, thanks a lot for reading this story, it means a lot to me! Leave comments if you want!


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